Wall, Beal spark Wizards; Hawks trail in series 2-0
WASHINGTON — In a rough-and-tumble, foulfilled game, Bradley Beal took over in the fourth quarter with 16 of his 31 points, including a key late 3-pointer, helping the Washington Wizards beat the Atlanta Hawks 109-101 on Wednesday night for a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series.
John Wall earned chants of “M-V-P!” while finishing with 32 points and nine assists, including the dish to Beal for his shot from beyond the arc with 38 seconds remaining that sealed the win.
The series shifts to Atlanta for Game 3 on Saturday.
Paul Millsap led the Hawks with 27 points.
Fizdale fined $30,000 for rant
The NBA fined Grizzlies coach David Fizdale $30,000 for his rant against the officiating in Memphis’ 96-82 loss to San Antonio in Game 2 of their first-round series.
The Spurs lead the series 2-0 heading into Game 3 on Thursday night in Memphis, Tenn.
Fizdale blasted the officiating in a nearly twominute tirade during his postgame news conference Monday night. Fizdale called the work of veteran crew Danny Crawford, Rodney Mott and Bill Spooner “unprofessional” and “unacceptable” before slamming his fist on a table and storming off.
Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley said he and his teammates will pay Fizdale’s fine.
Durant scratched from Game 2
The Warriors held out superstar Kevin Durant for Game 2 of their playoff series with Portland on Wednesday night.
Durant strained his left calf during a Game 1 victory Sunday, when he had 32 points and 10 rebounds in his playoff debut for Golden State.
He didn’t practice Tuesday.
Celtics’ Smart fined for gesture
Celtics guard Marcus Smart was fined $25,000 by the NBA for making an obscene gesture during Boston’s first-round Game 2 loss to Chicago.
The league did not release video of the incident in announcing the fine, but TNT’s cameras appeared to show Smart giving someone the middle finger after missing a 3-pointer in the fourth quarter Tuesday night.