Kemba Walker scored 28 points, Jeremy Lamb added 18 and the visiting Charlotte Hornets defeated the Washington Wizards 116-110 on Friday night.

Nicolas Batum and Tony Parker had 16 points each for Charlotte in a game between two of the teams chasing the Miami Heat for the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference. Walker was coming off a 40-point effort in a loss to the Rockets.

Bradley Beal, who had 15 points in a loss at Charlotte last Friday, had 23 by halftime Friday night and finished with 40 points on 15-of-29 shooting.

Jabari Parker had 17 points and 11 rebounds for Washington, and Jeff Green scored 20 points.

The Wizards had won two straight, while Charlotte had lost two straight and seven of nine.

Charlotte led 66-53 at intermission, and Bismack Biyombo's basket made it 79-60 early in the third quarter.

The Hornets twice led by 21 points in the quarter and were ahead 95-78 to start the fourth, but Jabari Parker's floater cut Charlotte's lead to 107-97 with 5:26 remaining.

Beal's two free throws cut the deficit to eight, and Troy Brown Jr.'s layup made it 107-101, but Batum hit a 3-pointer, and Lamb followed with another.

The Wizards closed again, and Green's two free throws made it 113-108 with 1:56 to play. Lamb picked up a 3-point play and the lead was back to eight, beyond Washington's reach.

Walker scored nine points, and Lamb's floater with one second left in the first quarter gave Charlotte a 40-26 lead after one.

Eight Wizards turnovers led to 17 Hornets points.

Tony Parker scored five straight points to open the second quarter and the lead was 19. The lead reached 21 before Beal hit back-to-back 3-pointers, starting a 12-0 that pulled Washington within 50-41.

Washington got within five points before Charlotte closed the half with an 8-0 run.

--Field Level Media