WASHINGTON — The Toronto Raptors began with a rush. They scored the first nine points against the Washington Wizards, built a 19-point lead in the first quarter and went ahead by 23 in the second quarter.
Near the end of the third quarter, Toronto still led by 17 points. Then Washington got hot and forced one overtime and then another.
Serge Ibaka’s 3-pointer with 15 seconds left in the second overtime allowed the Raptors to survive and earn their fifth straight win, 140-138 over the Wizards on Sunday.
“It shouldn’t come down to the last possession,” Kawhi Leonard said. “We need to close out games better.”
Leonard, who played a season-high 45 minutes, led Toronto with 41 points and 11 rebounds.
“Tonight he played like a superstar,” Ibaka said. “That’s how we need him to play and he did his job as a superstar. When we need him to step up and make big plays, he did them for us.”
Bradley Beal had his second triple-double of the season, collecting season highs of 43 points and 15 assists along with 10 rebounds. His 3-pointer with 20.4 seconds left in regulation tied it at 124 to force overtime. His jumper with 6.8 seconds to play in the first overtime tied it at 131.
Beal joined Oscar Robertson as the only players in NBA history with multiple games of 40 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds in a season. Robertson had three such games in 1961-62.
He didn’t have much to say about it, though, leaving the locker room before it opened to the media as the Wizards scrambled to make a flight to London for its next game.
Washington never led until early in the second overtime.
Leonard had 13 straight points in the fourth quarter and overtime. Toronto missed seven of nine from the field in the second OT and didn’t score for nearly 3 1/2 minutes, but Washington could only push ahead by three points during that stretch.
“We got lucky to get out of here with a win,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said.
Pascal Siakim scored 24 and had a career-high 19 rebounds for the Raptors.
Otto Porter, who had 27 points, missed a 3-pointer with 6 seconds to play in the second OT.
Trevor Ariza narrowly missed his second career triple-double. He had 23 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds before fouling out with 44.7 seconds left.
TIP-INS
Raptors: F/G C.J. Miles was out with a sore right hip. “Miles has been struggling,” Nurse said. “We tried to give him a go the other night. He still wasn’t quite right. We’re going to try and see if we can get him a little more squared away with what’s wrong with him. … G Fred VanVleet did not play because of a bruised left thigh. “Freddy took a big shot the other night late in the game,” Nurse said.
Wizards: G Tomas Satoransky, who had his first career triple-double on Friday, had just four points on 2-for-13 shooting. … Beal missed eight of nine shots in the first quarter. … F Jeff Green was assessed a technical foul.
LONDON CALLING
Washington will face the New York Knicks in London on Thursday.
“We want to enjoy it,” coach Scott Brooks said. “We’re not going to be there where you’re just going to focus on basketball. We all have lives. We all want to live a fun life.
“It’s a great time. It’s a players’ and coaches’ dream. You get to go to a cool city. We have some pretty cool things planned, some great sights to see, dinners to attend, some appearances to make. That’s part of being in the NBA. It’s a responsibility that we all have and we all share.”
LIFE WITHOUT WALL
Washington is getting used to playing without John Wall, who underwent season-ending left heel surgery on Jan. 8. The Wizards beat Philadelphia and Milwaukee, two of the East’s top teams, before narrowly losing to Toronto, which has the best record in the NBA.
“We’ve got guys out, so we have to turn up the intensity defensively,” Porter said.
UP NEXT
Raptors: Visit Boston on Wednesday.
Wizards: Play New York at The O2 in London on Thursday.
Courtesy: ESPN.com
