John Wall scored 28 points while Bradley Beal added 25 markers to lift the Washington Wizards to a 120-115 win over the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday at Capital One Arena. Big man Marcin Gortat tallied 16 points and 17 boards, Kelly Oubre Jr. and Jodie Meeks contributed 14 points apiece off the bench while Otto Porter Jr. had 10 markers for the Wizards, who opened the season at home for the first time since 2011. The 76ers got double-digit scoring from their starting unit, with Robert Covington leading the way with 29 markers while Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons added 18 points each and grabbed 13 and 10 boards, respectively.
Jerryd Bayless added 13, J.J. Redick had 12 while top overall pick Markelle Fultz scored 10 for the 76ers, who lost their fourth straight season opener.
Magic down Heat
Evan Fournier scored seven of his 23 points in the last 2:27 as the Orlando Magic notched their first season-opening win since 2012 after beating the Miami Heat, 116-109, at Amway Center. Fournier buried a three-pointer to put the Magic ahead, 108-103. When the Heat threatened at 110-107 after a putback by Hassan Whiteside, Fournier answered with back-to-back layups for a more comfortable 114-107 advantage with 30 seconds left. Four other Magic starters scored in double figures with Nikola Vucevic adding 19 points and 13 boards, Terrence Ross added 15, Aaron Gordon had 14 and Elfrid Payton chipped in 13 points and nine dimes.
New acquisition Jonathon Simmons added 12 markers off the bench. Whiteside finished with 26 points and 22 boards, Goran Dragic added 17 points, Dion Waiters had 15 while Kelly Olynyk and Josh Richardson added 10 points each. James Johnson and Justise Winslow had 11 and 10 off the bench, respectively.
Pacers beat Nets
The Indiana Pacers got double-figure scoring from eight players in their 140-131 victory over the Brooklyn Nets Wednesday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
Victor Oladipo led the way with 22 points, Myles Turner and Darren Collison added 21 points each, Thaddeus Young had 17 points and 11 boards and Bojan Bogdanovic scored 10 for the Pacers. Domantas Sabonis and Lance Stephenson added 16 points each and Cory Joseph had 10 off the bench. Sabonis and Oladipo were acquired by the Pacers from the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Paul George. D’Angelo Russell paced the Nets with 30 points while Trevor Booker tallied a double-double with 20 points and 10 boards.
