Slam Dunk Central

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The Washington Wizards did on Tuesday what a lot of teams have done to the Milwaukee Bucks this season - dominate in the paint; so much so that they scored a whopping 66 points there.? Antawn Jamison and rookie Nick Young combined for 45 points, leading the Wizards to a 105-97 victory over the Bucks at Verizon Center, enabling Washington to hang onto 6th place in the Eastern conference playoff race, 1 1/2 games ahead of the resurgent Philadelphia 76ers.

Washington pretty much had its way in the first half as they shot 55% from the floor - including 10 dunks, with 42 of the 57 points coming in the paint; they led 57-44 at halftime, but Milwaukee’s Royal Ivey hit a trey, starting a Milwaukee 19-6 run that tied the game at 63.? The scored was tied at 83 with 9 minutes to go in the game, but 3-point plays by Washington’s Darius Songalia and Young ignited a 12-2 Wizards run that built their lead to double-digits.? Young would make a 3-point play to put the Wizards up 103-91 to go, icing the game for Washington.

Washington was led by Jamison with 23 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal but 8 turnovers, while Young scored a career-high 22 points, along with 5 rebounds, an assist and 3 steals.? Brendan Haywood and reserve Andray Blatche added 15 apiece - with Haywood grabbing 6 rebounds, with a steal and 5 blocked shots, while Andray Blatche grabbed 7 rebounds, dished out an assist, had 2 steals and blocked a shot.

Milwaukee was led by Michael Redd with 26 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists but 7 turnovers, while Charlie Villanueva scored 24 with 16 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal and a blocked shot; Andrew Bogut had a decent game, chipping in with 23 points with 12 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal and 3 blocked shots.? Washington (31-32) now travels to Cleveland to face the Cavaliers on Thursday, while Milwaukee (23-41) goes west to Salt Lake City to take on the Utah Jazz Wednesday.