WASHINGTON -- No, confetti didnt fall from the rafters, and theres no parade scheduled for Pennsylvania Avenue. Dan Feeney Jersey . But John Wall pumped his right arm and smiled broadly as he dribbled out the clock, and the first word out of Bradley Beals mouth when he addressed the crowd said it all: "Finally." The Washington Wizards celebrated what they hope is the end of mediocrity Monday night, moving above .500 for the first time in more than four years with a 100-90 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. "Its only one game over, but, yeah, its a big relief," said Wall, who has endured more than his share of Wizards frustration since his selection as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 draft. "But the main thing is weve got bigger goals to try to keep winning games and try to keep getting better and try not to go back down -- so we wont have to have this talk again." Wall scored 22 points, and Trevor Ariza added 20 and had another solid defensive game for the Wizards, who hadnt had a winning record since beating the New Jersey Nets to improve to 2-1 on Halloween in 2009. Washington committed six turnovers while forcing 16 from Portland, and Wall and Co. didnt look back after Kevin Seraphin led a 12-0 run that put the Wizards up by 17 early in the fourth quarter. "Its great to finally get this team over the hump," Beal said. No one on the current Wizards roster was on the team when it was last above .500. They had lost this season at 0-0, 9-9, 14-14, 19-19, 20-20, 21-21 and 22-22, and the hurdle became such a bugaboo that players starting declaring the subject taboo when reporters asked about it. Coach Randy Wittman at one point cautioned against thoughts that "all of a sudden fairy dust is going to fall on us if we get over .500." Sticking with that theme, Wittman wasnt about to consider having slightly more "Ws" than "Ls" as much of an accomplishment. "It aint out of the way. How many more games have we got to play?" Wittman said. "You act like that was the last daggum game. ... If were going to learn to be a good basketball team, we have to do this every night, no matter who youre playing." The Wizards are 120-236 since that Oct. 31 victory 51 months ago, a .336 winning percentage better than only Minnesota and Sacramento over that span. The streak of futility fell just a few days shy of spanning an entire Winter Olympiad. "Its great that were 24-23 now, but I dont want them to focus on a number," Wittman said. "I want them to focus on the act of why youre 24-23. Thats where you keep it going. I want this team to get on a run. They havent ever been on a run." Another way to put the quest to move above mediocrity in perspective: The Trail Blazers would have to lose their next 20 in a row just to fall back to .500. But the Wizards have now topped two of the Wests top teams in back-to-back games, having taken care of Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday. Washingtons first playoff berth since 2008 is well within reach, especially in the watered-down East. The Trail Blazers arrived averaging a league-best 108.3 points and shot 61 per cent in the first half, but Portland was 6 for 17 from the field with seven turnovers in the decisive third quarter as Washingtons defence again held its own against a more celebrated lineup. Seraphin went 7 for 10 from the field and scored a season-high 19 points, making his mark by scoring the last four points of the third quarter and the first four points of the fourth. He followed a turnaround hook shot with a jumper to put the Wizards ahead 86-69. The Trail Blazers cut the deficit to six on a layup by LaMarcus Aldridge with 1:12 remaining, but Nene answered with a jumper to give the Wizards a 98-90 lead. Damian Lillard scored 25 points, and Aldridge had 20 to lead the Trail Blazers, who have lost four straight road games. They could care less about Washingtons over-.500 benchmark, but they know one thing for certain: The Wizards are a better team these days. "Give Washington credit," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. "They are playing well, theyve beaten some good teams, and they are playing with a lot of confidence." Notes: G Garrett Temple committed three of Washingtons six turnovers. ... Wizards F Trevor Booker missed the game due to personal reasons. Melvin Ingram Jersey . Halak did not get the start in the Washington Capitals Tuesday night game against the St. Max Tuerk Jersey . Maximilian Arnold put Wolfsburg ahead in the eighth minute, when the stationary Fallou Diagne allowed him to guide Patrick Ochs cross beyond the helpless Freiburg goalkeeper, and Ivica Olic doubled the lead three minutes later after Luiz Gustavo did well to set him up. http://www.prochargersteamstore.com/Youth-LaDainian-Tomlinson-Elite-Jersey/ .35 million, avoiding arbitration. Davis led the majors last season with 53 home runs and 138 RBIs, both career highs. He earned $3.TORONTO - With his team eliminated from post-season contention, Blue Jays manager John Gibbons turned to a rookie pitcher and a new-look lineup for Thursdays series finale against Seattle.The results were mixed.Daniel Norris turned in a decent performance in his first big-league start but the Mariners fought back for a 7-5 victory to avoid a four-game sweep and keep their slim playoff hopes alive.Gibbons rested regulars like Jose Reyes, Dioner Navarro and Jose Bautista and inserted several late-season callups into the lineup. Dalton Pompey of Mississauga, Ont., was the leadoff man while the bottom half of the order featured Toronto native George Kottaras, Kevin Pillar, Anthony Gose and Ryan Goins.Pompey had a decent game with a run, a hit and two walks while Norris gave up one hit and two earned runs over 3 1/3 innings.Thats a big thing, a lot of guys dont get that chance to come up at the end of the season, Gibbons said. When (players) go into a new season and they get called up for the first time, it can be a little intimidating.(Playing now) is going to help them all, regardless of the results.Logan Morrison belted a three-run shot for Seattle (84-75) and added a solo homer as the Mariners ended a five-game losing skid. Seattle entered play three games behind the Kansas City Royals and Oakland Athletics in the race for the two American League wild-card spots.Were still in the ring, still fighting, said Seattle manager Lloyd McClendon.Fernando Rodney gave up a solo homer to Kevin Pillar in the ninth inning before picking up his major league-leading 47th save.Norris retired the first eight batters he faced. On a limit of about 60 pitches, he was pulled after giving up a one-out walk to Kendrys Morales in the fourth inning.The 21-year-old left-hander, who made four relief appearances earlier this month, excelled in tthe minor leagues this year but has noticed a dip in his fastball speed since being called up. Drew Kaser Jersey. Its obvious my stuff is not really there, he said. Its tough to try to pitch without your stuff but sometimes thats the competitor (in you) that has to come out.I think thats what I tried to do today, was go out there and compete without your big guns.Todd Redmond relieved Norris and gave up an RBI single to Kyle Seager that cut Torontos lead to 2-1. Morrison followed with a no-doubt blast to right-centre field that brought three more runs across.Pompey showed some flashes of his potential throughout the game. He walked in the fifth inning, took second on an errant pickoff attempt, stole third and scored on an Edwin Encarnacion sacrifice fly.Adam Lind drove in Munenori Kawasaki later in the frame to tie it before Seattle went ahead to stay in the sixth. Morrison took an Aaron Loup (4-4) pitch over the wall for his 11th homer of the year.I dont have any idea how I hit that guy. Hes filthy, Morrison said. I blacked out. I dont know what happened. Obviously playing every day has helped my timing. I know this is the type of player I can be.Mike Zunino added an insurance run by going deep off Dustin McGowan for his 22nd homer of the year. Reliever Yoervis Medina (5-3) worked an inning of relief for the win.Seattle used nine pitchers while Toronto used six. The Mariners had three errors but outhit the Blue Jays 10-5.Notes: Announced attendance was 17,173 and the game took three hours two minutes to play. ... It was Morrisons second career multi-homer game. ... The Blue Jays will wrap up their regular season with a weekend series against the Baltimore Orioles. Drew Hutchison (10-13, 4.51 ERA) will start on Friday night against Baltimores Chris Tillman (13-5, 3.26).___Follow @GregoryStrongCP on Twitter. Wholesale Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys Free Shipping NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap Jerseys 2019 China Jerseys ' ' '
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