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WASHINGTON -- Considering the Washington Wizards are the hottest team in the Eastern Conference, hearing roars from the home crowd during the fourth quarter seemed logical. Except the robust and at times overwhelming cheers were on behalf of the visiting Los Angeles Lakers. John Wall noticed and those wearing and supporting the team in purple and gold paid the price.
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Wall scored 16 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter and had 11 assists as the Wizards ran their home winning streak to 16 games with a 116-108 win over the Los Angeles Lakers Thursday night.
Bradley Beal had 23 points and five 3-pointers as for the Wizards (29-20), whose last home loss was Dec. 6 to Orlando. Marcin Gortat matched his season-high with 21 points and 14 rebounds.
Since Dec. 1, Washington is an Eastern Conference-best 23-9 including 13 wins in its last 15 games and six straight.
The Wizards led by as many as 19 points and 90-79 entering the fourth quarter. The Lakers (17-35) started the final period with a 12-1 run, tying the score 91-91 on a layup by Lou Williams with 9:09 remaining.
Wall, recently selected for his fourth straight All-Star team, scored Washington's next eight points with two 3-pointers sandwiching a layup as the Wizards went up 99-93 with 7:43 left.
"Just hearing the crowd, hearing the crowd get up and make big Lakers chants just made me mad," the point guard admitted. "I do what I have to do to try and get a win for us"
After Los Angeles closed within three points on a layup by Clarkson with 1:49 remaining, Wall stuck a pair of mid-range jumpers for a 112-106 lead with 38.1 seconds left.
"We gave ourselves a chance to win against a very good team," Lakers coach Luke Walton said. "John Wall being the player he is stepped up and made some huge shots. He's an All-Star player."
Jordan Clarkson scored 20 points and Luol Deng had 17 for the Lakers. Los Angeles has lost four of five and 11 of 16. D'Angelo Russell finished with 17 points and 11 assists.
Los Angeles opened its five-game road trip by turning the ball over 20 times, though only five in the second half. Washington turned those turnovers into 24 points.
"It's tough when you fly across country like that and you kind of expect some early sloppiness and then you expect the guys to clean it up," Walton said. "I think it took a little too long to clean it up but I was proud the way we came back in the second half."
The Wizards didn't make a basket in the fourth quarter for the opening four minutes.
"We turned it up defensively," Clarkson said. "That's how we cut the lead down."
Then Wall took over.
"I don't know if he's ever had an All-NBA, but he's an All-NBA player and that is elite of all of the All-Stars," Washington coach Scott Brooks said. "He's that type of player."
Wall did receive some interior help as Washington scored 100 points for the 16th straight game.
Gortat, Washington's starting center, made 10 of 13 shots. He is 42 for 53 (80.7 percent) from the field during the winning streak.
"Our guys did a great job of finding (Gortat), in transition," Brooks said. "He does a great job of finishing. He has great hands; he catches and finishes as well as any big in the league."
Markieff Morris had 12 points and 11 rebounds for Washington.
Tarik Black had 13 points and 11 rebounds in his third straight start in place of Julius Randle, who played six minutes while recovering from pneumonia. Lou Williams scored 12 of his 15 points after halftime.
Washington's home winning streak is the second longest in franchise history. The 1974-75 Washington Bullets won 22 in a row.
The Wizards seemingly took control by outscoring the Lakers 27-15 in the second quarter for a 58-44 lead. Beal, who scored 28 in Washington's 117-101 rout over the New York Knicks Tuesday, made his first five 3-pointers and scored 19 in the first half.
NOTES: Wizards G John Wall was selected to participate in the Skills Challenge during NBA All-Star weekend. Lakers G Nick Young was among those picked for the 3-point shooting contest, the league announced Thursday. ... Los Angeles won in Washington last season 108-104 behind 31 points from Kobe Bryant. ... Wizards C Ian Mahinmi participated in shoot-around Thursday for the first time since having platelet-rich plasma treatment on both knees shortly before Christmas. Coach Scott Brooks said the big man could join full practice later in the week. ... The Lakers visit the Celtics Friday in the first meeting against their longtime rival Boston this season. ...Washington hosts New Orleans on Saturday after defeating the Pelicans 107-94 earlier in the week.
