NBA scores 2014: John Wall leads Wizards over Cavs and 3 other things we learned

Wall and the Wizards are among the East’s elite and the Cavs aren’t, plus three other things we learned Friday night.

Nov 22, 2014, 1:00 PM UTC

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Wizards scored 11 points in the fourth quarter of a marquee game against the Cleveland Cavaliers. And they still won. Handily. A superb John Wall led the Wizards with 28 points (17 of them coming in the third quarter), seven assists, six rebounds, and four steals as Washington beat Cleveland, 91-78, Friday night.

Washington outplayed Cleveland the entire night, and it didn’t take much effort. The Cavs looked lost on both ends of the court. Their offense was dull, led by isolation plays ending with contested jumpers. Their defense was suspect -- no one appeared to know where they should be. Nothing was clicking for the Cavs, they were completely off their game.

Much of Cleveland’s rough night can be credited to the Wizards, though, who came out firing and ready for a playoff-like performance. Washington started the season 7-3, but with all seven wins coming against teams with losing records it needed a marquee win to place itself among the East’s elite. Washington got it Friday night, dominating the team expected to top the East when the season began.

Wall was the biggest difference maker for Washington, though having his backcourt mate, Bradley Beal, back for his second game of the season, made a big difference. After making his season debut against the Mavericks in a loss Wednesday night, Beal scored 12 points off the bench Friday, picking up right where he left off in last year's postseason. After a lot of debate last summer about who made up the best backcourt in the league, round one definitively went to Wall and Beal. Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters failed to get anything going. With just 2 points on the night, Waiters was particularly bad.

Wall and Beal weren't the only key players, however. The Wizards' bench outscored Cleveland's, 34-9, including a big night from Kevin Seraphin, who had 12 points, six rebounds and three blocks. Paul Pierce put up a modest stat line of nine points and five rebounds, but his leadership was evident in huddles and timeouts, not to mention the two charges he drew in a decisive second quarter that saw Washington build a 13-point cushion heading into halftime.

Even better news for Wizards fans: There’s a lot of room for improvement. They let the Cavs stick around with some sloppy play in the fourth quarter (Washington had 17 turnovers), but the Cavs appeared even less interested in keeping the game close. They didn’t make a field goal in the final nine minutes and had 19 turnovers on the night. Sure, Washington scored just 11 points in the final frame, but Cleveland put up 13. An ugly win is still a win, and the Wizards are now 8-3, right in the mix for top team in the East.

Cleveland, on the other hand, is still struggling to find its identity. It continues to be said: the season is young. But aside from the poor play, a big issue from the Cavs Friday night was body language. The growing pains are evident and expected, but it’s jarring to see James so visibly upset and dejected. Cleveland has a lot of work to do. For now, they’re the ones looking up at Toronto, Chicago and Washington as the East’s elite.

3 other things we learned

The Magic are a dangerous team in the East. Orlando was down by 23 to the Charlotte Hornets, but outscored them, 41-21, in the fourth quarter to steal a surprising win. The Magic's four-guard lineup made a big difference in the fourth, and rookie Elfrid Payton tied his career high with 16 points, eight of which came in that decisive final frame. Orlando is now 6-8, but they're 6-4 since starting the season with four straight losses. Victor Oladipo is back and his energy has been a boost for the Magic, who will be battling for a playoff spot in the East if they can keep playing like they are.

A few teams won by about a million points. The Mavericks were up by 38 points at one point against the Lakers and won by 34, but that game wasn't even the biggest blowout of the night. No, the Raptors trounced the Milwaukee Bucks by 41. They led by 52 at one point. The Spurs and Phoenix both built 34 point leads against the Timberwolves and 76ers, respectively, before winning by 29 and 26. Golden State led by as many as 30 before winning by just 13 points over Utah. It was a lopsided night in the NBA.

The Eastern Conference isn't very good. It's not new news, but it was on full display Friday night. The top teams in the East struggled to play with teams in the West. An 8-3 team in the West (Portland) took on an 8-4 team in the East (Chicago, minus Derrick Rose). The results were depressing for the lesser conference. Portland dominated all facets of the game, winning 105-87. Meanwhile, the marquee matchup of the night saw two of the East's top teams put up 24 points in the fourth quarter -- combined.

Play of the Night

As stated earlier, it was a night of blowouts in the NBA. The Lakers lost by 34 for goodness sake. But they were only down by nine with 7 minutes left in the first half when Kobe Bryant took this shot. It perfectly summed up a rough night for the Lakers -- and a few other teams.