miaowang123: have improved from 29th in the

have improved from 29th in the

7 Dec 2019 at 01:06

WASHINGTON -- LeBron James only visible significant role was that of postgame heckler, interrupting Michael Beasleys interview amid a loose, upbeat locker room that normally wouldnt jibe with a 21-point loss -- or throwing in a towel in the race for a No. Nike Air Max Sale . 1 seed. James and Chris Bosh took the night off Monday, and the Heat were beaten 114-93 by the Washington Wizards in a no-contest game that guaranteed the Eastern Conferences top seed for the Indiana Pacers. So, no disappointment at all? "There would be no disappointment," said Dwyane Wade, who played because he needed some minutes after his recent nine-game layoff with a hamstring injury. "When the playoffs start, we have a new season and we will be looking forward to it." So the Pacers are locked in to a first-round series against the eighth-seeded Atlanta Hawks, while the two-time defending champion Heat get the No. 2 seed and either the Wizards or the Charlotte Bobcats. Miami began the day still in contention for the top spot, but they would have needed to win their last two games and have Indiana lose to Orlando on Wednesday because the Pacers hold the head-to-head tiebreaker. Figuring it would be better to be fresh for the post-season, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra sat two of his Big Three, saying they were dealing with "minor ailments" from "the residual of a long season." "It was out of our control. Those guys put in a lot of mileage," Spoelstra said. "Our schedule was fairly extreme down the stretch. Ive never been a part of a group thats played that many games in that few of days down the stretch. Thats not an excuse, but we want to just make sure our guys are sharp and feeling healthy." James has made it part of his annual routine to rest before the playoffs. He missed the final game in 2011 and sat out the last two in both 2012 and 2013. Trevor Ariza scored 25 points to lead the Wizards, who shot 59 per cent and made 14 3-pointers and remain one game ahead of the Bobcats in the race for the No. 6 seed. Washington has made it a point to avoid finishing seventh to keep from having to face the Heat in the first round -- knowing full well the cast of characters will be different than it was Monday night. "We played against a totally different Miami Heat today than usual," Wizards centre Marcin Gortat said. "Nothing to be excited about. ... It was more like a scrimmage game than a big battle." The Heat went with their 20th starting lineup of this season and trailed by as many as 36 in the second half. Beasley finished with 18 points, Toney ;Douglas had 14, and Wade scored nine in 18 minutes. Miami has lost four of five and is just 11-13 since March 4, including 3-9 on the road. Gortat had 10 points and 13 rebounds, and John Wall added 13 assists for the Wizards, who have seemingly escaped their 3-point shooting slump. After going 6 for 50 from long range over a three-game span, theyve since made 22 of 51 in their last two games. Ariza, whose shooting was hampered by a bout with the flu, made five of eight 3-pointers Monday night. Also, Nene, who sat out the Wizards previous game after feeling some stiffness in his recently sprained left knee, looked more like his energetic old self as he scored 18 points off the bench. Andre Miller supplied the games biggest highlight, making an overhand paint-to-paint pass to Bradley Beal that would make an NFL quarterback jealous. Beal caught the ball in stride and made the layup in one fluid motion while drawing a foul to set up a three-point play. "It was a post route," Beal said. "The safety bit on a ball fake, so I was able to beat the corner and I got free for a touchdown. Hopefully the Redskins will pick me up." NOTES: The Heat were also without C Greg Oden, who did not make the trip to D.C. because of a stomach virus. ... The Wizards sold out for the fourth time this season. Wholesale Nike Air Max From China . Off-season additions Jermain Defoe and Michael Bradley did not train with the club today, prompting Nelsen to declare its too early to tell if either will be ready for Saturday. Cheap Nike Air Max Outlet . The underachieving franchise finished 17th in the 19-team league with a 6-17-11 record this season. "Our soccer team is absolutely in complete disarray," said Leiweke, drawing laughs during an Empire Club luncheon speech about the future of MLSE teams and plans to improve them.DALLAS -- After winning the last three games by a 14-1 margin, Dallas coach Lindy Ruff and goalie Kari Lehtonen believe the Stars latest win was their best this season. Lehtonen made 24 saves for his second shutout in three games to lead the Stars to a 3-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night. "The last three games have all been excellent in all three zones," Ruff said. "This one against a highly skilled team and taking care of special teams probably knocks the other two down a little bit." Sergei Gonchar, Jamie Benn and Rich Peverley had Dallas goals, and Lehtonen also had an assist for the second consecutive game. "This is up there," Lehtonen said. "That teams really good. We were able to play a lot better than them. We dominated the power play and the penalty kill. Overall, it was a great effort." The Metropolitan Division-leading Penguins have lost two games in six days by a combined 8-1 to Dallas and Florida, teams fighting to get into playoff contention. Gonchar had a power-play goal, his second score this season, with just under 5 minutes remaining in the first period against his former team. Dallas has scored with a man advantage in seven consecutive games. Alex Goligoski, another former Penguins player, had an assist when Benn scored to make it 2-0 at 3:14 of the second. Peverley closed the scoring a little more than 7 minutes later. "This is desperation for (the Stars) and we saw that in their last two games. We saw it again tonight," Pittsburgh coach Dan Bylsma said. "This was a desperate team, played hard. We have to be able to match that regardless of where our position is or what the standings look like." Lehtonen faced only 12 shots during the first two periods, before the Penguins doubled their attempts in the third. "There were a couple of good (saves) in the second period when it was 2-0," Lehtonen said. "After that, we were able to score to make it 3-0. After that, it was quite relaxing. If I let one in, there would still be a two-goal lead." He stopped Pittsburghs Evgeni Malkin point-blank 9 1/2 minutes into the third. "With the team in front of him for the first 40 minutes, you couldnt find more than one or two good chance," Ruff said. "In the third period when he really needed them, he stood tall." Daallas line of Cody Eakin, Antoine Roussel and Ryan Garbutt neutralized the line centred by Penguins scoring leader Sidney Crosby. Discount Nike Air Max Wholesale. . "We were sharp, quick and crispy, and it worked out for us," Eakin said. Dallas dominated the first period, with 10 shots on goal to Pittsburghs 4, and scored first. Gonchar took a pass at the top of the slot from Ray Whitney on the right wing boards, and fired a high shot over Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury. Lehtonen also received an assist on the score. The Penguins Kris Letang went off for roughing at 1:14 of the second period. One second before the penalty expired, Benn took a pass from Goligoski in the right faceoff circle and shot over Fleurys shoulder to make it 2-0. The two power-play goals came against Pittsburghs league-leading unit, which entered the game with a streak of 11 successful penalty kills. "They capitalized on their power plays. We didnt," Crosby said. "We didnt execute when we got chances. They carried the play for the first two periods." Bylsma added: "I think momentum changed, we turn over the puck in the neutral zone. That led back to a chance against and then we took a penalty. That got their first power-play goal and in this game, were minus-2 in the special teams battle. That was a big part of the story tonight." Midway through the second period, Shawn Horcoff stole the puck in the neutral zone and passed to Peverley, who skated into the right circle and shot into the upper right corner of the net with 9:40 remaining. The Stars again outshot Pittsburgh in the second, 12-8. NOTES: Lehtonen leads NHL goalies with four assists this season. He has 31 in his career, with a high of six in 2010-11. ... Goligoski has five assists in his last three games. ... The Stars power-play streak is their longest since a seven-game run Dec. 11-23, 2010. They have improved from 29th in the league this season to 24th. ... Dallas penalty killers have succeeded on their last 15 opportunities, including four Saturday. ... Pittsburgh had won seven of the previous eight games against the Stars, dating back to 2003-04. ... Fleury had entered the game 6-0 with a 1.95 goals against average vs. Dallas. . Defenceman Matt Niskanens career-high six-game point streak ended for Pittsburgh. ... Benn has nine points in the past seven games. ' ' '



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