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Ellis leads Bucks past winless Wizards

Nov 10, 2012 - 5:33 AM Washington, DC (Sports Network) - Monta Ellis poured in 22 points and Brandon Jennings had 12 points and seven assists to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 101-91 win over the Washington Wizards on Friday.

Mike Dunleavy and Larry Sanders each scored 13 points and grabbed nine rebounds off the bench and Ersan Ilyasova had 11 points for the Bucks, who bounced back from an 18-point loss to Memphis on Wednesday.

"We pushed the lead up once in the second half, but gave it right back to them," Bucks coach Scott Skiles said. "We were able to push it up again and our bench was great tonight. We got a lot of contributions from our guys on the bench and that was good."

Bradley Beal netted a career-high 22 points and Trevor Ariza added 15 points and eight rebounds for the Wizards, who fell to 0-4 in the setback.

"We just have to keep plugging and emphasizing the positives," Wizards coach Randy Wittman said. "We're going to get both of these groups (the offense and defense), playing well together."

Washington opened the game on a 12-0 run, but saw that lead vanish quickly after Milwaukee used a 14-2 burst to tie the game. The Bucks took a five-point lead at 21-16 after Jennings' layup with 4:13 left in the quarter, but the Wizards used a small 6-0 run to take the lead back.

The teams traded shots for the rest of the frame before Beno Udrih's buzzer- beater gave Milwaukee a 30-28 lead after one.

The Bucks outscored Washington 26-19 in the second quarter and took a 56-47 advantage into the break. The Bucks shot 52.2 percent from the field in the frame, led by Dunleavy who poured in nine of his 13 points in the period.

Washington bounced back with a strong third quarter to pull within 75-72 entering the final stanza. The Wizards used a 14-2 run to take a 63-62 lead at the midway point but quickly saw the Bucks take a four-point lead after an Ellis jumper and a Dunleavy 3-pointer. Jan Vesely's jump hook knotted the game at 72-72 but Ekpe Udoh's three-point play put Milwaukee up 75-72.

It would be as close as the Wizards would get the rest of the way as the Bucks outscored Washington 26-19 in the fourth. The Wizards shot just 25 percent from the field in the quarter and made just 1-of-7 from long range.

Both Jennings and Beal were ejected with 23.7 seconds left after Jennings shoved Beal following a hard foul on Ellis. Ellis stole an errant pass and drove to the hoop but was fouled hard by Beal. Jennings ran up to Beal and shoved him from behind, and after the officials reviewed the play, both Jennings and Beal were ejected from the game. Beal's foul was deemed a "Flagrant Foul 2", which results in an automatic ejection.

"I know a team never wants to give up an easy basket and in that situation I think you should just wrap the guy up instead of pushing or fouling him hard when he's in the air, freak accidents happen," Jennings said. I was just trying to protect my teammate. I didn't think I was going to be kicked out for it."

Game Notes

Sanders has scored at least 10 points in four consecutive games for the first time in his career ... The Bucks had 21 turnovers after turning it over just 10 times on Wednesday ... Washington has started 0-4 for the second consecutive season. The Wizards lost their first eight tilts last year.