Wizards jump to early lead in another road win

INDIANAPOLIS — Bradley Beal scored 14 of his 25 in the fourth quarter and Trevor Ariza added 22 on Monday night, leading the Wizards past the top-seeded Pacers 102-96 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The Wizards won a second-round game for the first time since 1982 and are 4-0 on the road in this year's playoffs.

They ended a 12-game losing streak at Indiana that dated to April 18, 2007, and they did it by nearly leading from wire-to-wire.

Beal became the first player in league history to have three playoff games with at least 25 points before his 21st birthday. Ariza limited Paul George to 18 on 4-for-17 shooting. Ariza also matched his own franchise playoff record with six 3-pointers while setting a new mark for most successful 3-pointers without a miss, breaking the previous record of four set by Kevin Grevey of the Bullets in 1982.

Washington made a playoff franchise-record 10 3-pointers, going 10-of-16. Ariza hit five of his six 3s in the first half.

The Wizards jumped to an 8-0 lead and extended the margin to 28-15 after one quarter.

The Wizards trailed only once, 31-30, and took control with a 17-6 run to close the first half that made it 56-43. Indiana didn't get closer than five points in the second half.

Game 2 is Wednesday night at Indiana.

After Washington pulled out to a 92-78 lead midway through the fourth quarter, Indiana scored six straight to close to 92-84 with 3:24 left.

But Washington didn't allow another field goal for nearly six minutes, from 7:41 left in the game until Indiana's last-minute 3-point flurry that came too late.

Wizards 102, Pacers 96

WASHINGTON (102): Ariza 7-10 2-4 22, Nene 6-16 3-4 15, Gortat 4-12 4-6 12, Wall 4-14 5-6 13, Beal 8-18 6-9 25, Booker 0-0 0-0 0, Webster 0-1 0-0 0, Miller 1-2 0-0 3, Gooden 5-11 2-2 12, Temple 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 35-84 22-31 102.

INDIANA (96): George 4-17 9-9 18, West 6-15 3-4 15, Hibbert 0-2 0-0 0, G.Hill 6-11 3-5 18, Stephenson 4-13 2-2 12, Mahinmi 1-2 0-0 2, Turner 2-4 3-3 7, Watson 3-5 2-2 9, Scola 6-11 0-2 12, Copeland 1-1 0-0 3. Totals 33-81 22-27 96.

Washington 28 28 13 33— 102

Indiana 15 28 19 34— 96

3-Point Goals—Washington 10-16 (Ariza 6-6, Beal 3-5, Miller 1-1, Gooden 0-1, Wall 0-3), Indiana 8-17 (G.Hill 3-6, Stephenson 2-4, Copeland 1-1, Watson 1-1, George 1-5). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Washington 65 (Gortat 15), Indiana 46 (West 12). Assists—Washington 23 (Wall 9), Indiana 16 (George 5). Total Fouls—Washington 23, Indiana 26. Technicals—Gortat, West. A—18,165 (18,165).

LeBron says Durant should be picked MVP

LeBron James of the Heat says Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant would be a deserving winner of the league's MVP award.

It's expected that Durant will be announced as this season's MVP later this week. James has lauded Durant's play this season several times in recent weeks.

James said: "Much respect to him and he deserves it. He had a big-time MVP season."

James is a four-time winner of the league's MVP award. Durant averaged 32 points this season for the Thunder.

76ers' Carter-Williams named top rookie

Michael Carter-Williams won the league's rookie of the year award after becoming only the third player since 1950-51 to lead all rookies in scoring (16.7), rebounding (6.3) and assists (6.2). Oscar Robertson (1960-61) and Alvan Adams (1975-76) were the others. Carter-Williams received 104 of 124 first-place votes. The Magic's Victor Oladipo finished second and Trey Burke of the Jazz was third.

Report: Lakers to seek Tar Heels' Williams

The Lakers have added North Carolina coach Roy Williams to its interview list for a new coach, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The Lakers will not have a coach hired before the May 20 draft lottery. They expect to have one hired by the June 26 draft.

Mike D'Antoni resigned last week after going 67-87. He had one more year and $4 million remaining on his contract.

Williams, 63, coached the Tar Heels to the NCAA championship in 2005 and 2009. Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak played at North Carolina in the 1970s.

AROUND THE LEAGUE: Raptors coach Dwane Casey received a three-year contract extension, the Associated Press reported. Toronto went 48-34 to win the division for just the second time in franchise history. Brooklyn eliminated Toronto 4-3 in their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series.