Washington

Too Many Shooting Fouls Doom Wiz


Philip Maymin
Basketball News Services 

The Wizards fell 97-87to Kobe Bryant and his Shaq-less Lakers despite Washington's having superior numbers in total rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. The difference was free throws: the Wizards shot only 55.6 percent on 18 attempts while the Lakers shot 79.3 percent on 29 attempts, including 11-of-12 from the line for Bryant. Yet the Wizards committed only two more fouls than the Lakers did in total. They were just a different kind of foul.

The game was personified by Jarvis Hayes, who had a nice game, hitting two-of-three three pointers and 4-of-10 overall from the field. He even had three total rebounds, including two on the offensive boards, and three assists. He scored 10 points and committed no fouls, but also didn't make it to the line for a single free throw himself.

The Wizards had some nice fast breaks in the game and they are playing well. They outrebounded the Lakers 18-11 on the offensive boards alone. But they're not getting to the line as much as they could, and perhaps they are sending the opponents there too often? Out of the 18 fouls the Lakers committed, the Wizards got only 18 attempts from the line. Out of the 20 fouls the Wizards committed, the Lakers got 29 attempts from the line.

Should the "no layup" rule go under review?

NEXT GAME
The Wizards (3-5 in the preseason) open their regular season next week as they travel to Memphis to take on the Grizzlies on Wednesday, November 3rd, at 8:00pm Eastern. The game will be broadcast on CSN and NBA League Pass. They will be without Anthony Peeler, Gilbert Arenas, Larry Hughes, and Brendan Haywood, who are all serving suspensions.

TEAM NOTES
Tune into WTOP every weekday at 7:17 a.m. and 5:17 p.m. as the Wizards discuss topics on and off the court. Gilbert Arenas and NBC4's Arch Campbell kick off this week's action with a review of Ladder 49.

INJURY UPDATE
Steve Blake(ankle) is out 10 to 12 weeks;Kwame Brown(pinkie toe) will miss training camp, return date unclear;Anthony Peeler(dental surgery) is day to day;Etan Thomas(abdomen) is out with return date unclear.

NEWSLINES

Tom Knott ofThe Washington Timeswrites: The portion of the suburbanites who are hard-core sports fans usually only stay in the city after the workday if there is a game involving the Wizards or Caps on tap.They are not apt to wind up in the Kennedy Center or the National Theatre instead. These are two different entertainment crowds that rarely overlap.

WashingtonWizards.com writes: Washington took a 73-72 lead with 8:14 left on a free throw by Brendan Haywood before Jumaine Jones scored six points in a 1:34 span and Kareem Rush buried two 3-pointers to put the game out of reach.