Beal, Wizards move within victory of East’s second round

WASHINGTON — In the closing seconds of Game 5, the Washington Wizards had the lead and difficult decisions to make. Although the results likely won't appear in a highlight reel any time soon, Washington won the most pivotal game of the series Wednesday night at Verizon Center.

The 103-99 victory gave the Wizards a 3-2 series lead, pushing the Atlanta Hawks to the brink in the best-of-seven first-round playoff matchup. Bradley Beal led the team with 27 points on 11-of-22 shooting, yet clean looks for him were rare in the late moments. With the Wizards ahead by two, John Wall (20 points, 14 assists) made a jumper with 47 seconds remaining, the last points for either team.

When Atlanta's Tim Hardaway Jr.'s 3-pointer went awry in the final seconds, red, white and blue streamers fell from the rafters.

Through the first four games of the series, Wall and Beal continued their strong production of the regular season. Wall entered Game 5 averaging 28.8 points and Beal 24.3. But beyond the guards, no other Wizard had averaged more than 10.5 points (the foul-saddled Markieff Morris).

“Sometimes, the pressure of the playoffs can be more than it is. It's still basketball,” Wizards Coach Scott Brooks said. “You have to just focus on doing the things that brought you here and that you've done all season long for our team and nothing more.”

If the Wizards intend to sur- vive beyond this series, their scoring twosome would at least need to expand to a trio. The auditions had not gone well before Wednesday.

Since Game 1, Morris has spent as much time on the sideline in foul trouble as he has making an impact on the court. Morris dodged fouls early in Game 5, but the whistle haunted him after the first quarter. After scoring six points in the first quarter, Morris made just one more shot as he drew five fouls in 20 total minutes.