Trail Blazers 97 - 105 Wizards
Final
  for this game

Wizards hang on to beat Blazers

Mar 17, 2015 - 3:13 AM Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - Bradley Beal scored 23 points, John Wall flirted with a triple-double and the Washington Wizards held on for a 105-97 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday after leading by as much as 25 points.

Wall had 21 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds for the Wizards, who finished off a 3-0 homestand with their fourth consecutive win.

Paul Pierce added 16 points, Marcin Gortat had 16 points and nine rebounds and Nene scored 12 in the win.

LaMarcus Aldridge had 24 points and 12 rebounds for the Blazers, who rallied from 25 points down in the third quarter to make it a one-possession game down the stretch but never led after scoring the first bucket of the game.

Arron Afflalo added 15 points, Damian Lillard had 14 points and nine assists and Nicolas Batum and Chris Kaman each contributed 12 points in the loss.

The Northwest Division-leading Blazers had a three-game winning streak snapped and lost for only the second time in their last 10. They were coming off a 113-97 win in Toronto on Sunday to open a five-game road trip and begin a stretch in which they will play seven of eight away from home.

Portland's last lead was 2-0. But the Blazers made a game of it with a 28-10 run to end the third quarter, turning a 25-point deficit into a seven-point hole.

Afflalo started the flurry with a personal 7-0 run and scored 10 during the run, which got Portland within 81-74 going into the fourth quarter.

The margin was as low as three points after C.J. McCollum's jumper with 8:50 remaining, but Beal hit a 3-pointer at the other end and the Blazers were never closer than four after that.

"I like that we got behind by 25 and managed to put ourselves in position," said Blazers coach Terry Stotts. "It speaks well of our team."

Wall scored nine points in the first quarter and the Wizards led by as much as eight while shooting 60 percent.

"I liked our focus coming out to start the game and then our movement with the ball," said Wizards coach Randy Wittman. "It was pretty good basketball."

They shot over 54 percent in the second quarter and pushed their lead to 20 at halftime after an 11-0 run led by Beal's five points and capped by Pierce's 3 and a layup by Wall.

Game Notes

The Wizards shot 7-for-12 on 3-pointers and the Blazers were 8-of-28 ... Washington had 25 fastbreak points compared to Portland's four ... Portland visits Miami on Wednesday ... Washington begins a four-game road trip on Wednesday against Utah.






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