Bradley Beal, a star player for the Washington Wizards, says he stays focused on what he can control rather than watching the scoreboard in the final weeks of the regular season.
With a game against the Cavaliers on Friday night in Cleveland, Washington (32-37) continues to fight for the final play-in spot in the Eastern Conference.
For the tenth and final playoff spot, the Washington Wizards have a half-game advantage over the Chicago Bulls.
Beal scored 36 focuses Tuesday to assist Washington with snapping a three-game long string of failures with a 117-97 triumph over the Detroit Cylinders. Beal had seven assists and six rebounds while making 13 of 15 field goal attempts.
The Wizards played without forward Kyle Kuzma, who is recorded as everyday with right knee touchiness. Corey Kispert began instead of Kuzma against Detroit and got done with 16 focuses.
Washington also got a boost from rookie guard Johnny Davis, who scored a career-high 11 points off the bench and argued for more playing time. Davis had played 14 games and averaged 1.1 points per game in 4.9 minutes before this one.
After winning 117-107 in overtime on Oct. 23 and 114-91 on Feb. 6, Washington wants to sweep the Cavaliers this season.
Cleveland (44-28), which lost to the Philadelphia 76ers 118-109 on Wednesday, is fourth in the Eastern Conference and wants to get back on track.
A contentious sequence occurred with 4:12 remaining in that game, when Sixers center Joel Embiid appeared to be done for the night after receiving his sixth foul. The foul was reversed after Philadelphia challenged the call, allowing Embiid to remain in the game.
The Cavaliers were led by Caris LeVert, who scored 24 points, while Donovan Mitchell added 21. Cleveland, which was outscored 34-26 in the fourth quarter, was led by 15 points from Darius Garland and 15 points from Cedi Osman.
In the defeat, Cavaliers center Evan Mobley posted his 21st double-double of the season. Jarrett Allen, Cleveland’s center, did not play because of a bruised right eye and could miss his fourth consecutive game.
The Cavaliers, who have ten games remaining, five of which are on the road, were led by Lamar Stevens, who started in Allen’s place and scored six points in 12 minutes.
