The Washington Wizards led for most of the game but couldn't close out the Charlotte Hornets as they fell, 124-117, to 0-2 so far in the NBA's first-ever In-Season Tournament. Here are some notable postgame quotes from Wes Unseld Jr., Kyle Kuzma, and Tyus Jones.
Wes Unseld Jr.
On the intensity of an In-Season Tournament game and how the win the other day over the same team could've been a disadvantage:
"I wouldn't necessarily think disadvantage. I think you want to get to a point where we're playing well in series, so it's got that kind of feel. You have to make adjustments. The opponent doesn't know what you're going to do and how you handled it in the previous meeting so I kind of like that feel."
On the mood in the locker room after the game:
"I'm sure disappointed. We led for a majority of the game but they were good in one area that changed the game completely."
Kyle Kuzma
On the disappointment and frustration of Friday night's loss:
"I mean it's incredibly disappointing. I think this is a game that we needed. I thought it was a must-win game and I thought we felt pretty good about ourselves sitting at 3 and 5 and going into a back-to-back and it's a bitter taste. We all have to be better."
On losing to a Hornets team they had beaten the other night:
"I mean it sucks to lose and we just beat them by 20. And you know, we didn't play the same way that we did there. It just sucks."
Tyus Jones
On what went wrong in the second half:
"Too many second-chance points. Just weren't playing with the same aggression on the defensive end. We let them get comfortable. They hit a couple big shots. But second chance points, we got to do a better job just coming down, rebounding, eliminating their second chance points honestly. And it's offense, a couple of sticky possessions where the ball wasn't getting to the back side, second side, third side, things like that. We just settled for first look. We gotta grow. We gotta learn from that and be better when that situation comes around again."
On how they can improve rebounding:
"Just try to get in there and mix it up. Try to get in and mix it up, trying to read where the ball is going off the rim, things like that. We just scrap. Just got to scrap honestly."