Well, the Verizon Center certainly looks excited (sarcasm, there's nobody there).....and I'm sure to the chagrin of all, Eddie Jordan is going with the same starters (Dixon in for the injured Antonio Daniels).

Hey, the Wiz win a tip....strong move by Etan against Beasley on the opening play.

On the first play for the Heat, Chalmers easily drives on Dixon, pass and open make for Haslem. 2-2 tie.

9:48: Wade hits a baseline reverse layup as the shot clock expires. Help could have been better, but DeShawn absolutely froze on the close out as Wade, in the corner, received the cross court pass from Marion. 4-2 Heat.

Marion hits two of his patented ugly shots in a row....not sure why you'd want to patent that shot though. 8-2 Heat. (Meanwhile, Jamison has missed a hook-flip and a trey)

I'm beginning to wonder if the Wiz should just play straight up defense sometimes and stop all this doubling off the ball screen stuff (I'm also beginning to wonder if I've wondered this before).....they always get caught trapping out way too high and good passing teams easily find the open man, such as Udonis Haslem.....10-2 Miami (10 straight Heat points).

Eddie Jordan timeout and you can hear very light boos among the sparse crowd. 8:00 left. Miami is 5-7 (the 5 makes are accompanied by 5 assists), Wiz are 1-7.

6:18: Dixon drives and creates an open three for Jamison....I like 'em when they're in rhythm. 12-8 Miami.

The Heat haven't had any 2nd chances (offensive rebounds) this game.....yet, but they're not really crashing the boards either.

The Verizon is dead quiet at the sight of two crappy NBA teams missing shots in bunches. Miami calls a timeout and McGee and Young get set to check in for Etan and Dixon. Still 12-8 Heat with 4:50 left.

Insult on top of injury....Chris Miller is reporting that Eddie Jordan "revealed" today that DeShawn Stevenson has been dealing with a nerve issue in his hamstring. Antonio Daniels has also been ruled out for the Hawks game tomorrow.

3:17: The Heat have just been missing shots....but when the Wiz seem to be playing good defense, Dequan Cook hits a contested three at the shot clock buzzer. 15-10 Miami.

3:08: Jamison pretty back door pass to Caron for a dunk And 1. 15-13 Miami.

1:45: Dee Brown checks in for Stevenson.

There goes that double again. Marion slips the ball screen he was going to set for Cook. Not only do Jamison and Butler double Cook, but it's such a loose double that you could drive a truck in between them. Dee Brown takes a step off Quinn in the corner to dissuade the ball from going to the cutting Marion, but unfortunately, Quinn is too open for the direct pass from Cook. 21-15 Heat. It looks like Brown left the shooter, but what the hell were Caron and AJ doing?

That damn Chris Quinn. He hits a two in Nick Young's face to end the 1st. The Heat got a 2nd chance that time because McGee gave up on a Heat layup he thought was going down....but it didn't.

I will give Antawn Jamison an A for effort....he has 9 points and 4 boards after 1, but the Wiz shoot under 30% (6-22) as a team while the Heat shoot 50% (10-20....9 assists). 23-17 Miami Heat.

Q2

Young, Butler, McGee, Brown and Blatche start the 2nd.

The Andray Blatche Report: Wiz get a steal, Brown pushes the ball quickly up the court. The Wiz have five men running to Miami's two (with Quinn catching up), but have poor spacing...Brown ends up passing the ball back to Blatche who musters a miss from the FT line. Nick Young gets an offensive board, misses a fading turnaround on Cook with 18 seconds on the clock. Loose ball rebound. Andray looks like he has a beat on the ball, but he gets out-hustled by Quinn and Beasley who simply want it more.

Blatche is also making lazy cuts and carelessly swatting at the ball after the Heat have secured the board....he makes up with a drive and short J off the glass. 26-21 Miami.

McGee misses an oop trying to throw down a reverse....the reverse part didn't really look necessary.

8:40: Dom McGuire checks in for Butler....looks like everyone is playing tonight.

7:10: Blatche makes a strong drive....but for some reason throws up a running double-clutch one-hander...Miss...but to his credit, he works to get his own rebound, put-back, and foul...but misses the FT. 29-25 Heat.

Good News: Nick Young has picked it up after a mediocre game in Miami, and a slightly cold start tonight. He has 6 quick points.

Jamison and Dixon have checked in to join Young, Blatche and McGuire.

4:45: Caron Butler replaces the Taser.

Has anyone ever wondered why Joel Anthony pronounces his first name Joelle? It's a Canadian thing, I guess I wouldn't understand.

3:37: Nick Young gets D-Wade on skates.....splash, and it's a tie game at 33. The Wizards have gotten scrappier on D, forcing the ball out of Wade's hands more.

McGee back in for Blatche....with AJ, Dixon, Butler and Young. So should this be our starting lineup? JaVale has been quiet tonight....but at this point, I'd be fine with that. Yea, I know...change of heart on my part.

This Wizards unit is even moving the ball better. I spoke with my dad the other night, he said, "I see Nick Young is scoring a lot.....is that just because he is being a gunner?" I actually came to Young's defense, citing that he's passing the ball better, taking better shots, and has improved on defense, especially when it comes to contesting shots. Yes, me defending the Bean Burrito....didn't think I'd be doing that four months ago.

This just in: Dwyane Wade is still a bad dude. 7 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists.

Unfortunately, the Wizards give the Heat THREE second chances on their final possession of the first half. It ends with Dwyane Wade tipping in his own miss. Bad dude. 43-41 Miami Heat after 24:00.

Wiz shot 52% in the 2nd quarter....39% for the game. Miami is still up on rebounds, 25-20, but the Wiz have gotten to the FT line 11 times, making 8, while the Heat are only 2-4. Washington is also winning points in the paint 20-12. Hard to believe the Wizards have only taken two 3-pointers, making one.

Points:
Jamison - 13, Young - 10, Butler - 9
Marion - 10, Wade - 9, Quinn - 8

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Dear Dagger,

We need you. Hell, I need you. I'm a mess without you. I miss you so damn much. I miss being with you, I miss being near you. I miss your laugh. I miss your scent; I miss your musk. When this all gets sorted out, I think you and me should get an apartment together.

Sincerely,

Steve Buckhantz

Game time at 7:00 pm people, talk it up.

[photo source: flickr/wizardsdotcom]

Tonight, the Wizards have a shot at redemption against the same team that embarrassed them down in Miami on Friday. The 'Zards opened the game against the Heat with noticeably less energy than displayed at home against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday.

But energy can easily be sparked, even on the road, with some hustle and toughness. The Wiz looked to be doing just that as the third quarter starters (with Darius Songaila inserted for Etan Thomas) were able to cut the Miami lead down from 13 at halftime to six points, with not one, but two chances to cut it to four.

What would happen in the next six minutes would allow Dwyane Wade to rest for the entire fourth quarter and would seal a 1-6 fate for the Washington Wizards.

What did happen? Miami went on a 20-3 run to end the third. The Wizards offense sputtered and the two all-stars went MIA. However, the main culprit was lack of intuitive defensive positioning and a team void of the hustle swag needed to keep the Heat from getting second chance points.

Keep reading for a detailed account of the Miami Heat run.

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