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Wednesday, Nov. 1 7:30pm ET
Hamilton scores 15 of his 23 in fourth | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- Leonard Hamilton had no time to socialize on his short trip home to North Carolina. He was too busy earning his first victory as an NBA coach. Hamilton, a native of nearby Gastonia, N.C., coached the Wizards to a 95-77 victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday night. "It's nice to get a victory anywhere," Hamilton said. "This was a business trip for me, so hopefully I can visit with my relatives for a few minutes before we leave. There wasn't much time for it before the game." Hamilton, who spent 10 seasons at the University of Miami before taking the Washington job, used his pregame time to go over some numbers with his new team; the Wizards had lost five straight games to Charlotte, and were 2-17 last year when they played on consecutive nights. Since Washington was coming off a 97-86 opening night loss to Orlando, Hamilton figured the time was right to turn the streaks around. "We came here with a very businesslike approach and the desire to get the job done," he said. "And what we have done now is win one ballgame, that's it and we know that." Richard Hamilton came off the bench to score 15 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter to lead Washington. "I just like to be out on the floor, I don't want to be on the bench," Richard Hamilton said. "When I get my chances on the court, I try to make the most of them and I did tonight with some good looks at the basket." Rod Strickland added 18 points for Washington, Juwan Howard had 13, Felipe Lopez scored 12 and Mitch Richmond had 10 to move into 25th place on the all-time scoring list. Jamal Mashburn and Elden Campbell scored 13 each to lead Charlotte (1-1), which had a poor shooting night at only 36 percent from the field. "When the shots don't go in, you are going to look bad," coach Paul Silas said. "Tonight, nothing much went in, period." The Wizards jumped on Charlotte early, stretched its lead to 14 in the second quarter and led 51-42 at the half. Charlotte opened the third with an 8-4 run to pull to 55-50 on David Wesley's 21-foot jumper. Washington then took a timeout and tightened its defense afterward. Lopez started a 10-0 run by stealing a pass from Wesley, drawing a foul from Mashburn and hitting two free throws. The Hornets turned the ball over three more times in a five-minute drought. Mashburn was called for traveling, Wesley had a shot blocked, Campbell turned it over on an offensive foul and followed that by throwing the ball away on Charlotte's next possession. Washington was making all its shots at the other end to stretch its lead to 65-50. Charlotte ended the drought on P.J. Brown's jumper with 3:56 to go in the third. But it was too late for the Hornets, who never got closer than 11 the rest of the game. Game notesRichmond now has 19,652 career points. ... Derrick Coleman, out the last month while he adjust to new heart medication, hopes to return to the Hornets' lineup on Nov. 8, but said it will take him at least a month past that to be in top condition. ... Washington's Popeye Jones will be out at least three weeks with a fractured index finger on his left hand. Jones was injured on Tuesday night against Orlando. | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard Washington Clubhouse Charlotte Clubhouse RECAPS Boston 103 Detroit 83
Washington 95
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