"For most of three quarters on Friday, the Washington Wizards played with enough ambition and resolve that on other nights may have been sufficient to produce a victory.

The opponent in this case, though, was reigning Eastern Conference champion Miami, so an incomplete performance instead yielded a 106-89 loss before a Verizon Center crowd of 20,282 that booed the Heat's LeBron James at virtually every turn.

The Wizards (5-22), who suffered their sixth loss in seven games, got double-figure scoring from four starters, including a season-high 24 points and 13 rebounds from center JaVale McGee. But Washington shot 38 percent from the field and 19 percent from three-point range and missed 11 of 28 foul shots.

Nick Young added 22 points, and John Wall had 15 points and 10 assists but committed seven turnovers. Trevor Booker chipped in with 13 points and a game-high 15 rebounds.

"They're a great defensive team," Wall said. "That's why they were in the Finals. They just stopped us down the stretch, and they made plays. We couldn't get it going offensively, turned the ball over, shot clock violation, taking bad shots, and they just increased their lead."

Ahead by seven points to start the fourth quarter, Miami (20-7) used a 9-1 surge for an 83-68 buffer with 9 minutes 51 seconds to play. Washington whittled the margin to 91-80 on Young's three-pointer, but the Heat countered with a 10-1 flurry capped by Shane Battier's three-pointer for a 101-81 lead with 4:04 left that all but settled the outcome."