WIZARDS 101, CAVALIERS 98: Jordan Crawford scored 12 of his 31 points in the final seven minutes as Washington snapped a six-game losing streak against visiting Cleveland.
The game also featured Washington's John Wall and Cleveland's Kyrie Irving - the past two No. 1 overall picks - for the first time.
Wall had 24 points, five rebounds and five assists while Irving had 20 points - including 12 in the fourth quarter - and six assists.
Antawn Jamison, who was making his first trip to the Verizon Center since he was traded to Cleveland in February 2010, had 29 points and nine rebounds.
In his first start of the season, center Ryan Hollins had 15 points and seven rebounds.
Washington (8-28) has won 22 of 27 meetings with Cleveland (13-22) in the nation’s capital - including seven of the last eight.
After the Cavaliers led 72-64 with four minutes left in the third quarter, Wall scored eight points to spark a 14-6 run. Wall went the length of the court to tie the score at 78 as the quarter closed.
Cleveland missed its first seven shots of the fourth quarter and did not score until Irving's jumper with 7:47 remaining.
But with Wall and Crawford out, the Wizards failed to take advantage and led just 82-81 when they returned with 7:15 to go.
Crawford scored 10 of the Wizards' next 14 points for a 96-86 lead. Anthony Parker and Irving made back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the margin to 96-92 with 2 1/2 minutes to go.
Crawford answered again and Wall's two free throws made it 100-94 with 1:23 remaining. Irving's layup made it 100-97, and after trading misses, Irving made one of two free throws with seven seconds left. Wall made one of two free throws with 5.8 seconds remaining and Parker missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Irving missed Friday’s game against Chicago with what coach Byron Scott called “a bug” during the All-Star weekend in Orlando. ... Wizards forward Andray Blatche returned after missing 15 games with a strained left calf. He heard mostly boos when he first entered halfway through the first quarter and finished with nine rebounds. ... Wizards forward Alonzo Gee got his fourth start and had 11 points and four rebounds. ... Wizards swingman Nick Young, who injured his right knee against Orlando, sat out after missing two practices. An MRI revealed that there was no structural damage in his knee.
Cleveland | Washington | |
Antawn Jamison 29 | Scoring | Jordan Crawford 31 |
Kyrie Irving 6 | Assists | Andray Blatche 5 |
Antawn Jamison 9 | Rebounds | JaVale McGee 12 |
Antawn Jamison 6 | Free Throws Made | John Wall 8 |
Antawn Jamison 4 | Steals | Maurice Evans 2 |
Antawn Jamison 2 | Blocks | JaVale McGee 4 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Cleveland | 98 | 44.6 | 8-21 | 16-26 | 18 | 43 | 4 | 9 | 14 |
Washington | 101 | 46.0 | 8-21 | 13-21 | 26 | 52 | 9 | 10 | 18 |