in thr fourth to take a lead they didnt relinquish. A day after sc

CHICAGO -- Playoff appearances were rare enough for the Washington Wizards let alone series victories. Never mind all that now. John Wall finished with 24 points, Nene scored 20, and the Wizards beat the Chicago Bulls 75-69 on Tuesday night to clinch their first-round series in five games. Bradley Beal scored 17 points, and the fifth-seeded Wizards advanced in the post-season for just the third time since the 1970s. They will meet Indiana or Atlanta in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Hawks lead the series 3-2. Its a huge step for a franchise that hadnt been to the post-season since 2008, but with Wall and Beal leading the way, they won 44 games during the regular season. "It just shows our continued growth," Beal said. "We played great basketball in this series and we can only continue to get better and better." As for the Bulls? "It is real disappointing," Taj Gibson said. "We put so much work into the season, came out of countless holes." The Wizards turned a halftime tie into a nine-point lead heading into the fourth quarter and hung on down the stretch. Chicagos comeback chances took a big hit early in the final quarter when Gibson crumbled to the court clutching his left ankle after he tried to block a layup by Wall with the Wizards up by six points. He had to be helped off the court and did not return. The Bulls got within three points in the closing minutes but couldnt grab rebounds when they needed them, particularly after D.J. Augustin hit two free throws to make it 72-69 with 2:18 left. The Wizards grabbed three offensive rebounds while whittling more than a minute off the clock before Beal threw the ball away with a minute left in the game. Carlos Boozer missed on a drive, but the Bulls couldnt convert after a shot-clock violation by Washington with 22.4 seconds left. Chicagos Jimmy Butler missed on a layup off the inbounds, and the Wizards caught a break after Andre Miller missed two free throws. Nene tracked down the loose ball and Beal hit the first free throw to make it 73-69 with 14.6 seconds left before missing the second. But Nene got another rebound, and that led to two free throws by Wall with 7.8 seconds remaining. Nene was back to wreaking havoc after serving a one-game suspension for grabbing Butlers head, whether he was knocking down jumpers or scoring inside. He hit 10 of 17 shots and grabbed seven rebounds. Wall also had seven boards and hit 9 of 11 free throws. Marcin Gortat grabbed 13 rebounds, and the Wizards did something they have rarely done the past three-and-a-half decades -- they moved on. The playoffs have mostly been one-and-done affairs for them -- with a few exceptions -- since they lost to Seattle in the 1979 Finals. They knocked off New Jersey 2-0 in the first round in 1982 and took out Chicago in six games in 2005. In this series, they showed a resolve and killer instinct that wasnt always there in the regular season. "The main thing is to focus in and know what this team is capable of," Wall said. "I just give a lot of credit to my teammates and the coaching staff and the great game plan and making adjustments and committing ourselves to play on every given night." For the Bulls, a season that unfolded in ways they never envisioned is finally over. They expected to challenge Miami for supremacy in the Eastern Conference with Derrick Rose back after sitting out last season, only to lose their star to another season-ending knee injury. As if that wasnt enough, they traded away one of their top remaining players in Luol Deng yet somehow squeezed out 48 victories. No team in the East won more games after New Years Eve, either, but slow starts and poor shooting plagued them in this series. Butler and Kirk Hinrich scored 16 points each and Gibson had 12 for the Bulls. Joakim Noah, whose left knee has bothering him the past few months, added 18 rebounds and seven assists. Boozer, a candidate to be amnestied, added 10 points and nine rebounds in what might have been his final appearance for Chicago. The Wizards outscored the Bulls 20-11 in the third quarter to turn a 41-41 halftime tie into a 61-52 lead going into the fourth. "I am proud of this team," Noah said. "I am proud of the way we competed all year. We dealt with a lot. Whenever a season is over it is always tough." NOTES: The Wizards outrebounded the Bulls 49-43 overall and 15-8 in the fourth quarter. ... Nene declined comment about his suspension at the Wizards shootaround, saying, "I dont want to talk about that." ... Gibson on his injury: "Real painful. I got to see what they (the medical staff) say tomorrow." Wholesale Soccer Jerseys .com) - The Tennessee Titans agreed to terms with running back Jackie Battle on a one-year contract Friday. Cheap Soccer Jerseys Free Shipping . Ricciardo made it only halfway around the Jerez track before his RB10 rolled to a stop and began spouting smoke from the back. After team mechanics tended to the car, Ricciardo went back out for a mere two trips around the circuit before calling it quits. http://www.cheapsoccerjerseys.co/ .com) - A chant of Zeke reverberated around AT&T Stadium before Ezekiel Elliott powered into the end zone for his fourth and final touchdown. Discount Soccer Jerseys . Anything less than gold for either nation is considered a disappointment. Yet for Switzerland, advancing to the semifinal might be a victory in itself. Soccer Jerseys Outlet . According to a report from ESPN, the Green Bay Packers have re-signed the cornerback to a four-year, $39 million deal with a $12.PITTSBURGH -- Though it wasnt a clean effort, it was a win for the Milwaukee Brewers, and theyll take it. Kyle Lohse pitched effectively into the seventh inning, Carlos Gomez homered and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-3 Friday night. Lohse (3-1) improved to 11-2 in his career against the Pirates, allowing one earned run in a win against them for the second time in six days. "It wasnt pretty, but they all count the same," said Lohse, who was charged with three runs -- two unearned -- and four hits with three walks with five strikeouts. "Sometimes, you get a win thats ugly, sometimes youve got to catch some breaks and sometimes youve got to grind it out in key situations and find a way to win." Gomez homered deep to centre to lead off the fifth and added an RBI single an inning later as the Brewers rallied from an early two-run deficit. Four Brewers errors came during the first, third and seventh -- and the Pirates scored a run during each of those innings. But Pittsburgh left 11 men on base, including the bases loaded twice. "We just werent able to get that at bat when we needed it tonight," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. "Repeatedly." Charlie Morton (0-2) allowed five runs and eight hits in six innings while losing to Lohse for the second time this week. Russell Martin had two hits and two RBIs for the Pirates, who have lost six of eight. Four Milwaukee relievers combined to allow five baserunners in 2 2-3 innings but did not allow any runs while stranding six. Francisco Rodriguez worked the ninth for his fifth save in five opportunities. Lohses fifth pitch of the game was put in play by Starling Marte -- seemingly for a routine pop-up near the pitchers mound. But third baseman Aramis Ramirez and first baseman Mark Reynolds collided. It was originally inexplicably ruled a single until later changed by official scorer Evan Pattak to an error on Reynolds. That wasnt even close to the most memorable wacky play of the game. That came in the sixth inning, when Maldonado literally hit the coverr off the ball in what will be one of the more peculiar plays of the season.dddddddddddd Maldonado grounded to third, where Alvarez fielded a ball thats cover had partially ripped off. Alvarez threw the flapping, awkwardly floating ball toward first, but it fell well short of the bag, giving Maldonado an infield single. "I said to Hurdle, You see something new every day, huh?," Lohse said. "He kind of chuckled." Asked if hed seen it before, Hurdle said flatly, "Never. Never. Ever." "It was just one of those games," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. "Goofy stuff happened early -- then goofy stuff happened when Maldy hit the cover off the ball. Ive never seen that before. We got a run because of it. I dont know. Just a strange game. Hard to explain." After not getting a runner past first base in their first three innings against Morton, the Brewers got a two-run double from Scooter Gennett and an RBI single from Maldonado in thr fourth to take a lead they didnt relinquish. A day after scoring nine runs in the seventh and eighth innings, the Pirates pulled to 5-3 in the seventh on Andrew McCutchens RBI double, but Will Smith came on and struck out cleanup hitter Pedro Alvarez with runners on second and third to end the inning. The Pirates loaded the bases in the eighth, but Jim Henderson got Starling Marte to pop out to end the threat. NOTES: Pittsburgh SS Jordy Mercer was removed from the game with what the team called "discomfort" in his right ankle after Maldonado collided with him at second base during the third inning. Mercer stayed in the game the remainder of the inning. ... Less than 15 minutes before first pitch, the Pirates announced they acquired 1B Ike Davis from the New York Mets in exchange for minor-league RHP Zack Thornton and a player to be named. ... Playing each other seven times in a 10-day span, the Pirates and Brewers play the eighth of those meetings Saturday when Pittsburgh LHP Wandy Rodriguez (0-2, 7.31) faces Milwaukee RHP Matt Garza (0-2, 3.43). ' ' '