Anthony Davis poured in 25 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as the Washington Wizards whipped the visiting Charlotte Hornets 95-79 on Friday night.
Trae Young, who feasted at the free-throw line, racked up 21 points and 2026 No. 1 overall draft pick AJ Dybantsa, making his NBA home debut, provided 17 points. Kyshawn George added 12 points as the Wizards avenged a loss from earlier in the week in Charlotte.
Brandon Miller scored 19 points for the Hornets, who didn’t protect an early 10-point lead.
For the second game in a row, Miller didn’t receive much help on the offensive end as he led the team in scoring for the fourth consecutive game. Naz Reid, who was benched in the second half Wednesday at Detroit, finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds and Moussa Diabate tacked on 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Charlotte, which has lost back-to-back road games, attempted 28 more field goal attempts than Washington, but only converted 30-of-101 (29.7%).
The Wizards sank 10-of-30 3-point attempts, but that was far better than Charlotte’s 12-of-56 output.
Washington stormed ahead 79-54 by late in the third quarter in a game that was part of the NBA Cup’s group play.
Washington outscored the Hornets 29-7 at the free throw line, led by Young’s 12-for-14 effort along with Davis’ 9-for-10 mark.
Dybantsa made his much-anticipated pro debut two nights earlier in Cleveland and he was in the starting lineup again. He made 5-of-11 shots from the field and also pulled in eight rebounds.
The Wizards broke away with a 57-33 advantage in the second and third quarters combined.
Charlotte scored seven consecutive points in a span bridging the third and fourth quarters but Bub Carrington’s 3-pointer halted that surge. Dybantsa’s three-point play pushed the margin to 89-70 with 5:58 to play.
Carrington was 3-for-3 on 3-point attempts off the bench, with his nine points the top total for any reserve in the game.
Young added a game-high nine assists and came up with three steals.
–Field Level Media
