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Heat defeat Wizards, set franchise season mark for wins

Apr 11, 2013 - 6:47 AM Washington, DC (Sports Network) - Ray Allen scored 23 points and led the Miami Heat to a 103-98 win over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday.

Although LeBron James (hamstring), Dwyane Wade (ankle) and Chris Bosh (knee) did not play, Miami was still able to hold its own and take the victory, its 62nd of the season, breaking the franchise's single-season record set by the 1996-97 team.

In addition, Miami also clinched at least a share of the best record in the NBA and homecourt advantage throughout the entire NBA Playoffs.

Rashard Lewis scored 17 points, Shane Battier added 15 points and Mike Miller had 14 points and eight rebounds for the Heat.

"Between the streak and now this, if we do our job it will be something nice to look back on," said Miller.

A.J. Price had a team-high 23 points off the bench for the Wizards, who were looking to win their 10th straight game at home for the first time since Dec. 13, 2006 - Jan 20, 2007. John Wall nearly recorded a triple-double with 17 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds in defeat.

"This is one you want to win with those guys not playing," Wall said referring to Miami's Big Three. "Give credit to them for doing what they had to do to win the game."

Entering the fourth quarter, Washington had a 72-69 edge.

However, after a pair of free throws by Price, Miami went on a 12-0 surge, capped with a 3-pointer by Lewis, and the Heat led 83-74 with 7:22 left in regulation.

The Wizards got within one, 87-86, with less than five minutes to play, but the Heat remained in control, outscoring the Wizards 16-12 through the rest of the period.

The first half was close, with neither team able to pull away. The Heat began the game on an 8-0 run, and led 25-22 after 12 minutes, but Miami was unable to build its lead higher than four for the remainder of the half.

With Washington trailing 46-45 with 1:08 to go in the second quarter, Nene made a layup and Martell Webster drilled one from beyond the arc with 2.9 seconds left to give the Wizards a 50-46 lead at halftime.

The Heat kept the game close in the third, but because they shot just 36.8 percent from the floor, they were unable to take the lead.

Game Notes

Allen scored 11 points in the fourth quarter ... Mario Chalmers had 13 points and eight assists for the Heat ... Miami's Chris Andersen made all eight of his free throw attempts ... Miami was 20-of-23 from the foul line ... The Heat recorded 11 turnovers in the first quarter and 25 for the game ... Miami has won four of their last five games against Washington at home ... The Heat win the season series 2-1.