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SALT LAKE CITY — Brice Sensabaugh gave a long stare to official Tony Brother, shocked there wasn't a whistle.
Sensabaugh thought he was fouled on his potential game-tying 3-point attempt at the buzzer. Brothers, though, thought differently.
Sensabaugh had double clutched on the shot, trying to avoid it getting blocked by Khris Middleton, who swiped at the ball — and maybe he got a little bit of shoulder? — and that caused the ball to come up well short as the Wizards held on for a 125-122 win over the Jazz Wednesday at the Capital One Arena.
Sensabaugh might have been mad at the no call, but Utah management probably wasn't too upset.
On Wednesday, it was another long injury report for the Utah Jazz. Lauri Markkanen, John Collins, Collin Sexton, Jordan Clarkson and Walker Kessler all missed the contest in the nation's capital. Even Keyonte George joined the seemingly ever-growing list — though the reason (illness) was likely more legitimate.
The Wizards, who have the worst record in the league, weren't as shameless, playing Middleton and Marcus Smart.
"No matter who's playing or who's not playing, that shouldn't affect how hard I or the rest of the guys play," rookie Kyle Filipowski said. "I think that's the most important thing. It can definitely feel odd at times. The game plan might change. ... You kind of have to shift perspectives, but playing hard is the No. 1 thing, and that shouldn't be affected by who is playing or not."
And Filipowski helped push the Wizards to the (admittedley not very high) limit. Filipowski had 23 points on 10-of-17 from the field and added 13 rebounds
"It's a big lift in his responsibility, because with more minutes, there's so much, so many more situations that are going to happen," Jazz coach Will Hardy said.
For example, the Jazz changed the defensive coverage late and it was up to Filipowski to communicate that. That was a new ask for the rookie from Duke.
"I don't think there have been any moments this year where it's a close game late and Kyle's in at the five," Hardy said. "So, it's really good experience for him to be in those moments."
Especially because it came with a bit of success. The Wizards led by 8 points with 3:19 remaining and Utah got it to a one-shot game at the end.
"I think that's great for us just seeing these young guys work together and try to fight for that win," Filipowski said. "I think that just shows the potential we have moving forward."
He added that the new role forced him to think the game out more strategically and understand the best thing to do in each situation.
On offense, on Wednesday at least, the best thing was to find Johnny Juzang.
Juzang had his best game of the season, scoring 27 points to lead the Jazz. He was 10-for-15 from the field and hit two big 3-pointers late to give the Jazz a chance at the end.
"He made some big shots late, for sure," head coach Hardy said of Juzang. "And Johnny's continuing to feel his way into his new role."
Juzang's triple with 5.6 seconds left gave Utah a chance at the end, cutting Washington's lead to 2 points. After the Wizards missed a free throw on the other end, Utah had a chance to tie the game. He looked to be Utah's first option on the play but was well guarded leaving Isaiah Collier — who had 19 points and six assists — to look in the corner for Sensabaugh.
And that led to a stare down with an official.
