The dynamic duo John Wall and Bradley Beal led the charge as the Washington Wizards bullied the depleted Miami Heat, 106-87. Washington snapped their two-game losing streak, while Miami suffered their sixth loss in seven games.
Top Performers
The Wizards had six players finish the game in double figures, with John Wall and Bradley Beal leading the way with 18 points apiece. Wall added 10 assists to give him his 23rd double-double of the season. Marcin Gortat added 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Nene entered the starting lineup and finished with 16 points, six rebounds and five steals.
Miami was limited in available players, but Chris Bosh led the team in scoring with 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting. Luol Deng added 16 points and eight rebounds, while Tyler Johnson finished with 14 points and five assists. Amar’e Stoudemire came off the bench to score 11 points.
Injury Report
Both teams have been ravaged with injuries, making it tough to be consistent on a nightly basis. Miami is really depleted as Dwyane Wade was unable to play due to shoulder soreness. Goran Dragic missed his fifth straight game due to a strained left calf. Chris Anderson is still out with a sore left knee, while Beno Udrih missed his third straight game with a strained neck.
Miami center Hassan Whiteside would leave the game in the second quarter and never return as he suffered a left oblique strain.
Washington still has some important pieces out of their rotation. Otto Porter has missed the last four games with a sore right hip. Kris Humphries has missed eight games with a sore right knee, while Drew Gooden missed his third game with a sore left calf.
Wizards Lead From Start To Finish
Washington took advantage of the shortened Miami roster, who was on the second night of a back-to-back, and never trailed once in this game. The Heat would keep is close in the first quarter as they were only down four by the end, but Washington would turn it up on defense and led 51-37 going into halftime.
Chris Bosh would nail a three-pointer with 5:05 left in the third quarter to pull his team within five, but Washington would end the quarter on a 20-8 run to take a commanding lead. The Wizards would lead by as many as 24 points in the fourth quarter.
The Wizards are now at the halfway mark in the season and are one game below .500. They have underachieved thus far, and injuries have something to do with it, but they still have time to improve and turn things around.
“We’re not as good as we want to be. We’re not satisfied where we are. We’re not going to give ourselves a high grade. We’re average right now,” said Bradley Beal. “We still have a lot of work to do. At the same time, we’re still in a great position to make things happen and make a run.”
Up Next
The Wizards will host the Utah Jazz on Saturday night, while the Heat will continue their road trip and face the Toronto Raptors on Friday night.