NBA Game Recap - New York at Washington
Tue Mar 10, 2020 7:00 PM EDT

NY
115
WAS
122
F
BOS
114
IND
111
F
ORL
120
MEM
115
F
DAL
109
SA
119
F
MIN
111
HOU
117
F
CLE
103
CHI
108
F
PHO
105
POR
121
F
BKN
104
LAL
102
F
LAC
131
GS
107
F

Mar 10, 2020, 7:00 PM EDT

Final

1

2

3

4

T

New York

31

39

17

28

115

Washington

36

18

33

35

122

Bradley Beal scores 39, leads Wizards past Knicks 122-115
Tue Mar 10, 2020 11:38 PM

WASHINGTON (AP) Bradley Beal got back to his high-scoring ways with 39 points, lifting the Washington Wizards to a 122-115 victory over the New York Knicks on Tuesday night.

Beal overcame a slow start and surpassed the 25-point plateau for the 22nd time in 23 games. His string of 21 such games was snapped Sunday when he scored 23 in a loss to Miami.

"I hated how I closed out the (last) game," said Beal, who was 0 for 9 in the fourth quarter against the Heat.

The Wizards' win meant the Heat will have to wait at least one more day to clinch an Eastern Conference playoff spot. Miami can do so with a home win Wednesday against Charlotte.

Beal connected on five of his first 15 shots against the Knicks, but then made six of 10 the rest of the way.

"What helps me, and what helps us as a team, is when we have fun," he said. "We enjoy each other. We play for one another. We hold each other accountable but we still enjoy the game."

Shabazz Napier added 21 points for the Wizards.

Bobby Portis and Frank Ntilikina each scored 20 points to lead the Knicks. For Ntilikina, it was a career high. Julius Randle added 16 for New York before fouling out.

"We were anticipating Bradley Beal having a (big) second half, and we needed to come out and do a better job of containing," Knicks coach Mike Miller said.

Both teams squandered big leads. The Wizards lost a 14-point lead in the first quarter, and the Knicks blew an 18-point advantage in the third.

The teams are out of the playoff hunt in the East, and it sounded as if there were more Knicks fans than Wizards supporters in the stands.

When it was announced late in the first quarter that a 3-pointer by Ntilikina was overturned by replay review, there were more boos than cheers in the more-than-half-empty arena. Chants of "Let's go, Knicks!" and "MVP" could be heard as rookie RJ Barrett shot free throws.

TIP-INS

Knicks: G Dennis Smith Jr. was cleared from the concussion protocol but did not play.

Wizards: G Jerome Robinson was back in the starting lineup after missing Sunday's game against Miami with an Achilles injury. ... G Ish Smith missed his fourth consecutive game with left hamstring tightness. ... F Isaac Bonga did not play due to a groin contusion.

CELEBRATION POSTPONED

The Knicks have postponed their planned anniversary celebration of the franchise's 1970 NBA championship because of concerns about the novel coronavirus. New York is working with players from that title team to reschedule events originally set for Madison Square Garden on March 21, when the Knicks host the Golden State Warriors.

RUI BOUNCES BACK

Wizards coach Scott Brooks said before the game the team planned to get struggling rookie Rui Hachimura involved early, and that's exactly what happened.

Hachimura took a feed from Thomas Bryant on the game's opening possession for an uncontested dunk. He had been 0 for 14 from the field in the Wizards' two prior games.

After being held scoreless in Sunday's loss to Miami, Hachimura connected on three of his first four from the field and scored 10 of his 12 points in the first half.

"He wasn't stressed out that he was never going to be able to have a great game again," Brooks said.

CLOSED LOCKER ROOMS

Both locker rooms were closed to the media in keeping with the league's new policy to help contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Players and coaches spoke to reporters in designated interview areas.

"Our locker room is a lot more quiet now," Beal joked after the game.

UP NEXT

Knicks: At Atlanta on Wednesday.

Wizards: At Boston on Friday.

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More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports

Leaders

New York PTS +/- AST REB ST BLK
F. Ntilikina 20 17 10 2 2 0
B. Portis 20 11 5 6 0 1
Washington PTS +/- AST REB ST BLK
B. Beal 39 14 7 3 3 1
S. Napier 21 8 6 2 3 0

Team Comparison

NY WAS
Points For 115 122
Field Goals 42/81-52% 35/74-47%
Three Pointers 8/21-38% 14/35-40%
Free Throws 23/31-74% 38/45-84%
Offensive Rebounds 8 9
Defensive Rebounds 28 28
Rebounds 45 48
Blocks 3 4
Steals 10 8
Turnovers 18 16
Points Scored Off Turnovers 22 28
Points in the Paint 54 34
Fast Break Points 6 13
Personal Fouls 29 25
Technical Fouls 1 3
Flagrant Fouls 0 0
Ejections 0 0

2019-20 Reg Season - WAS Leads Series 3-1

Date Result Away Pts Ldr Home Pts Ldr
Mon Dec 23 WAS 121 @ NY 115 B. Beal 30 J. Randle 35
Sat Dec 28 NY 107 @ WAS 100 J. Randle 30 J. McRae 20
Wed Feb 12 WAS 114 @ NY 96 B. Beal 30 J. Randle 21
Tue Mar 10 NY 115 @ WAS 122 F. Ntilikina 20 B. Beal 39

Game Information

Stadium: Capital One Arena, Washington, District of Columbia
Attendance: 15,048
Game Time: 2:33