CLEVELAND -- The Washington Wizards lost Nene to a knee injury, and then won the game with a strong effort on defence. John Wall scored 21 points, Bradley Beal had 17 and the Wizards beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 96-83 on Sunday night. Washington had a 66-63 lead midway through the third quarter when Nene departed with a sprained left knee. The Wizards then held the Cavaliers to 11 fourth-quarter points to return to .500 at 28-28 on the season. They also strengthened their hold on the fifth spot in the Eastern Conference standings. "Were a team right now thats just trying to play the right way and get on a roll," Wall said. Nene had eight points, four rebounds and four assists in 21 minutes. He was coming off one of his best games with the Wizards, when he had a career-high 30 points in Saturdays win over New Orleans, including the game-winning dunk with less than a second left. Coach Randy Wittman said Nene banged knees with Spencer Hawes and will get an MRI on Monday. Luol Deng led Cleveland with 17 points and the injury-riddled Cavaliers lost for the second straight time after winning six in a row. The Cavaliers played without centre Anderson Varejao (sore back) and guards Dion Waiters (hyperextended left knee) and C.J. Miles (sprained left ankle). While the Wizards are in good shape to snag a playoff spot in the weak Eastern Conference, the Cavaliers are five games out of the final post-season slot. Kyrie Irving, who scored 15 points, admitted that hes looking at the standings. "You have no choice but to pay attention to it," he said. "We want to accomplish something, but it starts with every single game. Time is of the essence right now." Washington led 78-72 after three quarters, and then grabbed control in the fourth. Two baskets by Kevin Seraphin, who replaced Nene, and five points by Beal helped the Wizards build a double-digit lead before Trevor Arizas 3-pointer with a little over a minute left made it 96-81. "We felt bad when he got hurt, but during the game, you have to keep focused the whole way, which we did," Seraphin said. The Cavaliers shot 49 per cent in the first half, but were 4 of 19 from the field in the fourth quarter. "The ball just seemed to stick in one area," Cleveland coach Mike Brown said. "It was almost like we played in an elevator at times. It wasnt crisp like it was in the first half." Ariza scored 15 points and Marcin Gortat had 13 points and 13 rebounds. Hawes, playing his second game since being acquired from Philadelphia on Thursday, had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Cleveland. The Wizards used a 12-0 run midway through the first quarter to go ahead for good. Cleveland got within one point several times in the third quarter but never pulled even. The game featured two of the top young point guards in the league in Irving and Wall. Irving was the MVP of the All-Star game and Wall won the dunk contest. Wall ended the first half with a dunk and two 3-pointers in the final 1:21. He banked in a 30-footer to beat the halftime buzzer, giving Washington a 58-52 lead. Washington scored the first two baskets on a tip-in and a fast break after a bad pass by Irving, leading to a timeout by Brown just 31 seconds into the game. Browns message obviously worked as the Cavaliers took a 13-8 lead, but the Wizards scored the next 12 points to go ahead 20-13. The teams split the season series, with the road team winning all four games. "The last time we played Cleveland, we gave the game away," Ariza said. "They played harder than us the last time. We did our best to prevent that from happening again." Hawes made his home debut late in the first quarter. He had 13 points and seven rebounds in 14 first-half minutes. NOTES: While theres no timetable for the return of Clevelands injured players, Varejao, who has missed the last six games, was on the court at Saturdays practice. Waiters hasnt been able to run since being injured Tuesday while Miles is still using crutches after hurting his ankle Wednesday. ... The Wizards are 11-6 in their last 17 road games. Washington is 14-14 on the road and at home. ... Cavaliers F Tristan Thompson, a native of Canada, celebrated his countrys win over Sweden in the gold-medal hockey game at the Olympics. "Were supposed to win," he said with a smile ... Wizards F Otto Porter, the third pick in the draft, didnt play for the fourth time in six games. Puma Shoes Discount Sale Online .com) - Eric Fehrs goal 42 seconds into overtime lifted the Washington Capitals to a 5-4 come-from-behind victory over Columbus, halting the Blue Jackets seven-game win streak. Puma Shoes Online Sale . It was just business as usual for the Thunder at home. Durant scored 32 points and the Thunder beat the Bulls 107-95 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. http://www.clearancepuma.com/. PETERSBURG, Fla. Puma Shoes Wholesale China . Toronto has lost six of its last eight games but is coming off Thursdays 7-3 victory at Kansas City. Juan Francisco and Colby Rasmus both went deep for the Blue Jays, who are second in the American League with 34 home runs on the season. Puma Shoes Clearance Sale .com) - The Utah Jazz look to put an end to their five-game losing streak when the Denver Nuggets visit Salt Lake City Monday night. MINNEAPOLIS -- The Oakland Athletics brought Jim Johnson into their bullpen when they lost All-Star closer Grant Balfour in free agency. Two weeks into the season, Johnson is 0-2 with an 18.90 ERA and one blown save in five appearances for the Athletics. Manager Bob Melvin couldnt afford to wait while the former Orioles closer got into a groove, removing him from that role on Thursday. Melvin will proceed with a closer-by-committee approach. "Theres no timetable," Melvin told As beat writers before the team played their series finale against the Minnesota Twins. "Lets just get him straightened out. And we have plenty of options. Thats the good thing about our team, our versatility. Well play it by ear based on how the games going, whos available on that particular day." Hes allowed at least two runs in three of his five appearances, his seven total runs allowed is tied for the most in the AL among relievers. Hes allowed moore walks and hits than any other reliever in the league.dddddddddddd. Its a far cry from the dominant reliever who saved 50 games for the Orioles last season, tied with Atlantas Craig Kimbrel for the most in the majors. The As were in the market when Balfour, who had 38 saves last year to help Oakland win its second straight AL West title, signed with the Tampa Bay Rays over the winter. Johnson is making $10 million and will be a free agent at the end of this season, but the As can take heart that he has recovered from similar funks before to post solid seasons. Last year, he was charged with three losses and four of his nine total blown saves during a tough six-game stretch in the middle of May. He allowed 12 runs over five innings in that stretch, but posted a 1.52 ERA in his other 69 appearances. Oakland will use Dan Otero, Ryan Cook, Luke Gregorson and Sean Doolittle in save situations, depending on the matchup. Wholesale HoodiesNFL Shirts OutletJerseys NFL WholesaleCheap NFL Jerseys Free ShippingWholesale Jerseys CheapCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '