The Wizards Find Life: Inside the Stunning Comeback That Shocked Milwaukee 129-126
For a team like the Wizards, sitting at 3-16, the concept of “resilience” usually feels like a hollow buzzword thrown around in post-game press conferences to mask the scent of another blowout. When you lose 14 games in a row, as the Washington Wizards recently did, the weight of the season tends to crush the spirit long before the final buzzer sounds.
But on Monday night, inside an arena that has seen far too much disappointment lately, the script flipped. The Wizards didn’t just beat the Milwaukee Bucks 129-126; they clawed their way back from the dead in a game that had no business being this entertaining.
Down 16 points in the third quarter, trailing 81-65, Washington looked ready to fold. It was the familiar script: stay close early, collapse late, and move on to the next city. Instead, they dug their heels in. They found a pulse. And by the time the final chaotic seconds ticked off the clock, they had secured their second win in three games, proving that there is still fight left in this locker room.
A Veteran’s Composure When It Mattered Most
In moments of chaos, you look to the guys who have been there before. For the Wizards, that steady hand was CJ McCollum.
The game was hanging in the balance, the score tight, the tension palpable. With the clock winding down and the offense looking stagnant, McCollum didn’t panic. He isolated, worked the clock, and rose with 14.4 seconds remaining. The 3-pointer found the bottom of the net, a dagger that effectively broke Milwaukee’s back.
McCollum finished with a team-high 28 points, adding four rebounds and five assists. His shot at the end of the shot clock to make it 127-123 was the kind of bucket that stops an opposing rally dead in its tracks. It was a reminder of why you bring a veteran scorer onto a rebuilding roster—to teach the kids how to close.
The Fourth Quarter Rollercoaster
The final frame was a masterclass in back-and-forth basketball. Every time the Wizards threw a punch, the Bucks countered.
The Bucks, led by a surging Kevin Porter Jr. (30 points) and the omnipresent Giannis Antetokounmpo, seemed to have regained control midway through the fourth. When Antetokounmpo threw down a thunderous alley-oop off a feed from Ryan Rollins, Milwaukee led 120-115 with under three minutes to play. The momentum had shifted. The air should have left the building.
But the Wizards refused to go away. Marvin Bagley III, who was a menace in the paint all night with 22 points and 9 boards, slammed home a dunk to cut the lead. Then, in a twist that surely stunned the Milwaukee faithful, Khris Middleton—wearing the D.C. uniform in this matchup—became the hero Washington needed.
Middleton hit a jumper, and then, with 52.2 seconds left, buried a massive 3-pointer to give the Wizards a 124-122 lead. It was a surreal sequence, watching the former Buck haunt his old franchise, capitalizing on the open looks created by Kyshawn George and McCollum.
Defense Turns to Offense: The Coulibaly Exclamation Point
If McCollum provided the dagger, Bilal Coulibaly provided the exclamation point.
With the Bucks scrambling to make something happen in the dying seconds, trailing by four, they looked to Antetokounmpo. But the Wizards’ defense swarmed. Coulibaly jumped the passing lane, stole the ball, and raced the other way.
He didn’t just run the clock out. He took it to the rack, throwing down a dunk with 5.4 seconds left that pushed the lead to six. Even more critical? The play drew the sixth and final foul on Antetokounmpo, sending the Greek Freak to the bench and ending any hope of a Milwaukee miracle.
Building Momentum in D.C.
This wasn’t a perfect game. The Wizards gave up 50 rebounds and allowed Milwaukee to shoot over 54% from the floor. But in the NBA, style points don’t count in the standings.
The bench unit was spectacular, with Cam Whitmore pouring in 17 points and Tristan Vukcevic adding 16. They weathered the storm when Milwaukee pushed the lead to double digits in the third quarter, turning a blowout into a brawl.
For a team that has spent the better part of a month serving as the league’s punching bag, this win means something. It’s a signal that the 14-game losing streak is in the rearview mirror. The Wizards are starting to figure out who they are when the pressure mounts. Monday night, they were the team that refused to blink.
