Washington Wizards head coach Brian Keefe credited his team’s defense and bench contributions in Thursday’s 109-99 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
“Yeah, I thought they were terrific. We played smaller tonight and we played Jamir and Justin at the four and five. Thought Malachi gave us good minutes in there. They kept us game steady for us,” Keefe said on his bench’s performance after rookie Tre Johnson left with an ankle injury.
Keefe also highlighted Alex Sarr’s impact despite being under the weather. “He obviously wasn’t feeling good, but he’ll step up to the plate. Career-high rebounding. He was out there switching on pick and rolls, protecting the rim.”
Defense was the key factor for the Wizards’ win, according to Keefe. “We didn’t shoot the ball the way we would have liked, but we’re winning with our defense. We were able to get stops, keep them off the free throw line, and those are the things that make us consistent.”
Bilal Coulibaly drew praise for his defensive presence. “He sets the tone at the point of attack. He had 10 rebounds tonight. It just causes havoc out there. It’s hard to bring the ball up for him. It gets everybody engaged because they see him and have to respond.”
Keefe noted the importance of Sarr’s matchup with Myles Turner. “It was multiple efforts. We were switching pick and roll. He had to come back, and he had seven offensive rebounds, which was another big key for us. We had 23 second-chance points, attacking the glass helped us win the possession game.”
The coach also commended the team’s resilience in close situations. “We’ve been in a lot of these close games here recently. The most important thing is executing defensively and getting stops. Then we found good execution things offensively, like the backdoor to Khris from Kyshawn and Bub hitting key free throws.”
Kyshawn George’s aggressiveness was another highlight. “We want to put him in those positions as much as possible. He’s early in his career, learning where he can get to, sees over the defense, can pull up, and make passes. Those are good experiences for him.”
Keefe appreciated the energy in the locker room after the win. “I think they were just happy with the win, grinding it out that way. I’m probably too old to understand half the stuff they do in there, but it was positive energy.”
Even with a smaller rotation, Keefe emphasized the team’s effort at the rim. “We made plays on their bigs, scrambling over, digging out balls, blocking shots, getting on loose balls. All those are winning plays, doesn’t matter the size.”
On facing the Bucks for the third time this season, Keefe remained focused on the process. “We just take it game by game. Every game is a separate thing. Really, I don’t have much more on that.”
