Nene Hilario, John Wall spark Wizards past Heat
John Wall scored 20 points and recorded 10 assists, his 16th double-double of the season, to lead the Washington Wizards to a close victory over the Miami Heat, 105-103. The Wizards shot 39-79 (49.4%) from the field and turned it over on only nine possessions. Washington (19-6) has now won six consecutive games, dating back to a 133-132 victory over the Boston Celtics on December 8th.
Wall shot 6-10 and went 8-10 from the free throw line, in a good performance. Other top performers for Washington were Nene Hilario with 20 points and six rebounds, and Bradley Beal with 16 points and seven rebounds. Dwyane Wade had another big game for Miami despite the loss, putting up 28 points on 12-26 shooting (2-4 on 3-point attempts), in addition to going 2-5 from the free throw line. He also added eight assists.
The Wizards posted a sterling assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.67. This year, they are undefeated (5-0) when they exceed 2.50 in this metric. Conversely, the Heat are winless (0-2) when allowing their opponents to achieve such a stellar ratio.
This drops Miami (12-15) to 1-2 versus Washington on the season.
Coming up, the Wizards take on the Phoenix Suns, who are 13-14 on the season. The Heat go up against the Boston Celtics, currently sitting at 10-14 this year.
