Perhaps all they needed was a little home cooking. After dropping the first two games of their opening round playoff series with the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Washington Wizards returned home for Game Three and scored an impressive 108-72 victory.
The 36-point win was a Washington record for largest margin of victory in a playoff game. It also established a Cleveland franchise record for biggest margin of defeat. It was a stunning reversal from Game Two, when the Cavaliers crushed the Wizards by 20.
While the games haven't been very competitive, there have been a number of intriguing subplots to hold everyone's interest. Before the series, Washington's Deshawn Stevenson said Cleveland superstar LeBron James was overrated. In the third quarter of the blowout, with the Wizards up 28 points, the crowd serenaded James with chants of "Over-rated!" when he stepped to the foul line. Even James couldn't help but laugh.
When James first heard of Stevenson's remarks, he declined to comment, saying it would be like rap mogul Jay-Z responding to a one-hit wonder like rapper Soulja Boy. Well, in an effort to further irritate James, the Cavaliers had Soulja Boy sitting in the front row for Game Three. The rapper could prove to be the team's good luck charm.
Of course, the Wizards also got an emotional boost from star scorer Gilbert Arenas returning to the starting lineup. Arenas, who has been coming off the bench as he slowly works his way back from a knee injury, had only two points in 10 minutes before leaving the game with a leg injury. It's believed Arenas suffered a bone bruise on his surgically-repaired left knee, but he's expected to play in Game Four.
