Bradley Beal was unstoppable for much of the first 47 minutes of Sunday’s game between the Washington Wizards and Boston Celtics. The Celtics had no answer for Beal. He scorched Boston for 46 points on 16-of-29 shooting from the field, leading Washington to a 110-105 lead with just over 46.9 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.
Unfortunately the wheels fell off from that point on for Beal and the Wizards. Jayson Tatum, Beal’s childhood friend from their native St. Louis, scored the final six points of the game. And thanks to two mental gaffes from Beal, the Celtics stole the game for a 111-110 win.
Beal’s pair of hiccups were laminated on the Wizards’ final possession. Trailing by one, Beal was double teamed in the corner, leading to a desperation heave that clanked the rim.
The final sequence just stamped how the Wizards let victory slip away.
With 46.9 seconds remaining and Wizards up 110-105, Tatum scored his first of three straight buckets in quick fashion. The Wizards tried to eat the clock but the possession ended with Russell Westbrook missing an open three. Tatum responded out of the timeout with a layup, splitting two defenders falling to the floor.
The Wizards quickly threw the ball in to Beal. With just 15 seconds, the Celtics tried to trap Beal along the baseline before they would foul to extend the game. However, Beal slipped, presumably on the wet spot left by Tatum on the previous layup. Beal stepped out of bounds on his way to floor.
After an official review confirmed the call on the floor, Tatum once again scored. This time the go-ahead bucket to put Boston up 111-110 with 4.7 seconds remaining. That led to the final sequence of the game.
Westbrook, who finished the game with 24 points and 11 rebounds, appeared to be open initially when Beal caught the inbound and the double team emerged.
But Tatum and Semi Ojeleye did a great job of trapping Beal, taking away his passing angles. Kemba Walker turned to get in prime position to jump a pass to Westbrook. Thus, Beal was left to result to is a heave.
Credit the Celtics and their head coach Brad Stevens for opting to double team the red-hot Beal on both of the Wizards’ final two possessions. Along with Tatum’s trio of clutch buckets, that proved to be the difference between a win and a loss.
