Washington banks on McCollum’s 46 points to end 14-game losing streak

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Finally, after exactly a month of embarrassment, the Washington Wizards halted their 14-game losing streak and will have something positive to take into the end of November.
On Nov. 26, 2025, Washington came out firing on all cylinders and dominated the Atlanta Hawks, 132-113, in the ongoing NBA regular season at Capital One Arena.

Despite being haunted by the nightmare of their one-point loss to the Chicago Bulls in their previous game, Washington had seen enough and was eager to escape the hall of shame, thanks to a vintage performance from veteran shooting guard CJ McCollum.

The savvy scoring machine recorded a new season-high after exploding for 46 points on an efficient 17-of-25 shooting from the field, including 10 made three-pointers.

Unlike in their previous 14 losses, where McCollum received most of his touches from flare screens along the baseline, the Wizards tweaked a major part of their offensive system and let him bring the ball down on almost every possession.

As a result, McCollum was able to dictate the pace of the game and scored a large portion of his points on pull-up jumpers in the first half.

In the blink of an eye, Washington took a quick double-digit lead, courtesy of McCollum, who simply couldn’t be stopped every time he ran the pick-and-pop with Alex Sarr.

The Hawks tried to claw their way back in the second quarter after Kristaps Porzingis provided some much-needed treys, supported by Onyeka Okongwu’s aggressiveness on the offensive glass.

Just when Atlanta thought it could match Washington’s grit, the Wizards had other plans in the second half and clipped the Hawks’ wings by outscoring them 34-23 behind McCollum’s late third-quarter surge.

All hell broke loose in the first four minutes of the final canto when the Wizards ballooned their lead to 33 points, resulting in a bench clearing from the Hawks.

Aside from McCollum’s scoring barrage, Sarr also flaunted his paint presence with a double-double outing of 27 points, 11 rebounds, two steals and two blocks.

Unsung hero Khris Middleton shifted into the role of floor general as he notched his first-ever double-digit assist game, dishing out 12 assists along with 10 points and seven rebounds.

On the other hand, the Hawks missed the impact of emerging superstar Jalen Johnson, who, after averaging 28 points over the past seven games, chipped in only seven points on 3-of-12 shooting from the field.

The Wizards will aim to pick up where they left off on Nov. 28, as they take on the Indiana Pacers in a battle of the Eastern Conference’s cellar dwellers, while the Hawks look to bounce back on the same date against the Cleveland Cavaliers.