Former Terp Juan Dixon leads Wizards

Former Maryland Terp Juan Dixon was so upset with his performance after Game 3 that he approached his coach in the parking garage and appealed for a vote of confidence. The rest of the Washington Wizards also were upset -- with the perception they couldn't play defense. Combine those two, and you get a career-high 35 points from Dixon and a team that took control in the opening minutes by not allowing the Chicago Bulls anywhere near the rim. The Wizards jumped to a 17-3 lead, rattling their opponents early and often in a 106-99 victory Monday that evened their first-round playoff series 2-2. ``It's like we walked into an ambush,'' Chicago forward Tyson Chandler said. Dixon made 11 of 15 field goals, popping endless jumpers to help build the lead early and stave off the comeback threat until late. He also made all 10 free throws. He scored 25 points in the first three games combined and was an ugly 1-for-10 in Saturday's Game 3, prompting him to hold up his coach and family for 10 minutes in the MCI Center's underground lot afterward. ``I said, 'Coach, don't lose confidence in me. I'm going to step up and get my act together.' That's pretty much what I said, but I said it, like, 10 times,'' Dixon said. ``I made sure that he heard every word. He had his kids in the car. He said he was ready to go get something to eat. I just wanted to drill that in his head and make sure he heard it.'' On Sunday, Dixon took 750 shots before practice and 300 afterward. The best-of-seven playoff continues Wednesday in Chicago.