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Miami (21-44) at Washington (31-34)

Currently: Washington, DC
Temp: 69° F

Game info: 7:00 pm EST Sat Mar 15, 2003
TV: SUN, CSMA

Saturday, Mar 15, 2003

Preview | Box Score | Recap

WASHINGTON (TICKER) —The struggling Washington Wizards try to avoid falling further back in the Eastern Conference playoff race when they host the lowly Miami Heat at the MCI Center on Saturday.

The Wizards have lost five of their last seven games and are are one game behind Milwaukee for eighth place in the Eastern Conference. Washington is three game ahead of 10th-place New York.

Washington fell three games under .500 with a 90-80 road loss to the Detroit Pistons on Friday.

Jerry Stackhouse scored 24 points and Michael Jordan added 15 for the Wizards. Stackhouse left after turning his left ankle late in the game, but the injury is not considered serious.

Washington point guard Tyronn Lue scored eight points in his first game after missing six in a row with a separated left shoulder.

The Wizards have won four of their last six home games and are 22-13 at the MCI Center this season.

The struggling Heat failed to win consecutive games for the first time in more than three months with an 87-83 home loss to the New Orleans Hornets on Friday.

Rookie Caron Butler tied a season high with 25 points and Vladimir Stepania added a season-high 17 for Miami, which has lost five of its last six games and 11 of 14.

The Heat are just 9-25 since their last winning a streak - a three-game run from December 27-January 1.

Miami snapped a six-game road losing streak with Tuesday’s win in Cleveland and is just 8-24 away from home this season.

The Heat have a 40-20 all-time advantage over the Wizards, including a 17-13 edge on the road. The teams have split two meetings this season, with each winning on its home court.

Updated Saturday, Mar 15, 2003