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Wizards drop Jazz, win back-to-back for first time all season

Jan 18, 2011 - 12:46 AM Washington, DC (Sports Network) - Nick Young hit a key three-pointer down the stretch and finished with 25 points, as the Washington Wizards held on for a 108-101 win over the Utah Jazz at Verizon Center.

Andray Blatche turned in a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds, while rookie John Wall ended with 19 points and a career-high 15 assists for the Wizards, who were coming off a victory over Toronto on Saturday and have won three of four overall.

Deron Williams led all scorers with 28 points and added 11 assists for Utah, which had a three-game winning streak halted. Al Jefferson chipped in 25 points and 10 boards in defeat.

"He's one of the fastest, quickest guys. He gets out and runs. He's a smart point guard," Williams said about Wall. "He knows how to get others involved. He's going to be a top point guard for a long time."

Young hit a fadeaway jumper to give the Wizards a seemingly comfortable 97-86 lead with just over four minutes to play, but Andrei Kirilenko hit a three to spark a 12-4 Jazz run, then finished it off with a free throw to make it a 101-98 game with 1:26 left.

However, Blatche was fouled and made 1-fo-2 at the line on Washington's next trip down the floor and Young drained a corner three a short time later to put the Wizards up 105-98 with 40.9 seconds remaining and they would hold on from there.

"When we get a lead down the stretch and teams come back, we got to learn how to close it out," Wall said.

Blatche scored 10 points in the opening quarter to help the Wizards grab a 21-18 lead after 12 minutes.

C.J. Miles' three-pointer gave the Jazz a brief lead, 30-29, with 7:25 left in the half, but Wall bookended a 10-2 run with a jumper and layup to put Washington in front 39-32 with 4:24 remaining. The hosts held a slim 42-39 edge at the intermission.

Washington dictated the pace for the majority of the third as Blatche ended a string of 10 straight points with a three-point play to give the Wizards double-digit lead at 67-55 with 5:26 to play in the third.

Wall's layup increased the Wizards' advantage to 15 at 73-58 a short time later and they took a 78-68 edge into the fourth quarter.

Game Notes

Despite the loss, the Jazz have won 16 of the past 24 meetings with the Wizards...Rashard Lewis contributed 13 points and eight boards, while JaVale McGee ended with 11 rebounds to go with seven points for Washington, which shot 53.5 percent from the field and made 6-of-14 from three-point range...Paul Millsap had 11 points for the Jazz, who made 45 percent of its shots and 14-of-27 from beyond the arc.