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Friday, Mar. 10 7:00pm ET
Wizards' two-game win streak snapped | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
WASHINGTON (AP) -- With five seconds left in regulation, Tim Duncan caught Mario Elie's inbounds pass at the top of key, blew past Juwan Howard and rammed home a left-handed dunk to tie the game. With 2.2 seconds to spare.
The big-time move sent the game to overtime, and Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs ruled from there, outscoring the Washington Wizards 11-4 in the extra period in Friday night's 106-99 victory. "You know how to do a lot of other things, but you throw the ball to Tim Duncan and everybody get out of the way," San Antonio guard Avery Johnson said. "And fortunately, we have that type of guy that can make plays like that." Duncan finished with 23 points on 10-for-13 shooting, including a gentle kiss off the glass for San Antonio's first points in the extra period. He also threw an alley-oop assist to David Robinson that put the lead at 102-97 with 1:32 to go. But it was Duncan's dunk over Howard that left everyone buzzing. "I think he was coming towards me when I caught the ball," Duncan said. "And I pulled it quick and went so that his momentum was going the other way. By the time I got by him, he didn't want to foul me and give up the three-point play, so I just got by him. "I was going to go anyway. Knowing we were down two, I didn't want to take a jump shot or anything fading away. Just wanted to push it at the basket and see what was there." Said Howard: "He took the ball to the hole. I wasn't going to foul him. I'd foul out. I'd put him on the free throw line. That man is one of the best in the league." Robinson had 21 points and 11 rebounds. Antonio Daniels, redeeming himself after missing an easy layup in the final minute of regulation, and Elie both made huge 3-pointers in overtime as the Spurs won their third straight and ended Washington's two-game winning streak. Howard scored 29 for the Wizards, who nearly completed a sweep of last year's NBA champions. Once struggling to be worthy of the price of admission, the Wizards are suddenly playing some of the most entertaining games in the NBA -- they just aren't winning them all. They've played six nail-biters in a row, including an overtime victory Wednesday over the New York Knicks, and have won three of them. "We're playing harder," said point guard Rod Strickland, who credits the turnaround to new coach Darrell Walker. "We're playing more together. We're playing with a purpose." The Wizards were left to reflect on two plays that could've won it in regulation. Strickland made just one of two free throws with five seconds to go, leaving the lead at two and setting up Duncan's dunk. Then, after a timeout following Duncan's dunk, Gerard King somehow missed Howard standing wide open under the basket and instead threw the inbounds pass to Mitch Richmond, who missed a 3-pointer as the horn sounded. "I've been up and down with my free throws all year," Strickland said. "I make some of them, but sometimes I miss them." Duncan had three fouls by halftime, but he had a nice sequence late in the second quarter when he blocked King's layup, scored on a tip-in in transition, then blocked Howard's layup from behind. San Antonio led 52-46 at the half. The Wizards rode Howard in the third quarter to take back the lead. Howard scored 12 in the period, shooting 6-of-7.
Game notes | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard San Antonio Clubhouse Washington Clubhouse RECAPS Boston 104 Chicago 74
San Antonio 106
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