Field Level Media
Dec 30, 2019
Jordan McRae scored 29 points and Garrison Mathews added 28 points to help the host Washington Wizards cool off the Miami Heat with a 123-105 victory on Monday night.
Ian Mahinmi added a career-high 25 points -- including 2 of 3 on 3-pointers -- for the Wizards.
Jimmy Butler led the Heat with 27 points, and Bam Adebayo added 14 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. The defeat snapped Miami's five-game winning streak, which was the longest active streak in the league entering Monday.
The Wizards, who entered the game having lost nine of 11 games, took control in the second quarter when Mathews had 20 points.
Washington overcame the absences of seven injured players, including two-time All-Star shooting guard Bradley Beal (sore right knee), who leads the team in scoring (27.8 points) and assists (6.7). Beal had played 194 consecutive games before missing the past two contests.
The Wizards also played without five-time All-Star point guard John Wall (foot), their top 3-point shooter Davis Bertans (quad), starting center Thomas Bryant (foot), rookie first-round pick Rui Hachimura (groin), shooting guard C.J. Miles (wrist) and center Moritz Wagner (ankle).
The Heat were without point forward Justise Winslow, who has played just 10 games this season due to back and other ailments.
Duncan Robinson's two 3-pointers helped Miami race to an 8-0 lead. The Heat went up by as many as 12 points before settling for a 39-29 advantage at the end of the first quarter. The Heat shot a blistering 65 percent in the first, including 7 of 11 (63.6 percent) from behind the arc.
The Wizards then had a huge second quarter, taking a 71-63 lead into halftime. Washington shot 61.9 in the first half, including 9 of 16 on 3-pointers. Washington had three big first-half scorers thanks to Mathews (22), McRae (20) and Mahinmi (19).
Washington extended its lead to 18 points with 4:23 left in the third quarter on a 3-pointer by Isaiah Thomas. Miami answered with a 12-0 run, cutting its deficit to 90-81 entering the fourth quarter.
The Wizards then played a strong fourth quarter, holding off the Heat.
--Field Level Media