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Washington 97, Phoenix 96
In Clutch, Jordan Again Proves His Wizardry

PHOENIX, Feb. 15 (Ticker) -- The Washington Wizards are winning a lot of game they consistently lost before the arrival of Michael Jordan.

Jordan sank a jumper over Shawn Marion with two-tenths of a second left to give the Wizards their first road victory over the Phoenix Suns in nearly 14 years, 97-96.

Although many were skeptical about Jordan's return to the NBA, his impact on Washington is undeniable. The Wizards went from a laughingstock right into the playoff hunt and are a dangerous team in close games due to the looming presence of Jordan, who continues who to expand his history of game-winning shots.

"To come through when everyone needs you to come through is great," he said. "When you feel like you can do something, go out and do it. There is no fear, there is only two things you can do. You can make it or you can miss it. Go out there and give it your best shot and walk away from it."

Jordan came up short with 16 seconds left when he missed a potential game-tying jumper from the left baseline. But Tyrone Nesby, who scored 12 points in the fourth quarter, came up with a follow dunk to forge a 95-95 tie.

Stephon Marbury, who gave Phoenix the lead with a layup at 22 seconds, was fouled by Nesby on the other end but made just 1-of-2 free throws.

"Nobody knows what would've happened if I made that free throw," Marbury said. "There's no guarantee that we would've won. At the end of the game you know who is going to take the last shot. Everybody in the building knows."

With the game on the line, Washington turned to Jordan, who had missed his previous six shots and scored just seven points since the start of the second quarter.

Jordan received the inbounds pass above the top of the circle. Guarded by Marion, he drove to the right side of the lane. He got Marion off the ground with a headfake before burying a 13-footer.

"Shawn played me pretty good, especially going to my right," Jordan said. "He is a quick leaper. I think at the end of the game I had to use my shot fake to get him out of his rhthym. I got a good look at the basket and knocked it down."

"I was playing good defense on him the whole game," Marion said. "He hit more free throws than shots the whole game but what can I do? He hit a great shot, he's a great player."

Phoenix coach Scott Skiles defended his decision not to double-team Jordan on the final play.

"That's typically a bogus move with under 10 seconds left," he said. "You leave somebody wide open. It all happened so fast. He caught the ball, took two dribbles. We knew exactly what was going on, we knew they'd get it right to him. He just took it where he wanted to, he's done that many times."

Dan Majerle's errant inbounds pass sailed out of bounds on the ensuing possession, giving the Wizards their first win in Phoenix since February 27, 1988.

Richard Hamilton scored 29 points and Jordan finished with 22 for Washington, which salvaged the finale of a three-game road trip. Nesby scored a season-high 18 points and tied his season high with 10 rebounds.

"(Nesby) made us a different team," Wizards coach Doug Collins said. "He's our most athletic player. Tyrone allows us to keep them out of the lanes. He's in great shape, he's playing well and he's having fun."

"Tyrone Nesby came in and gave us defensive stops and offensive rebounds," Jordan said. "(Hamilton) got off to a good rhthym today and Popeye (Jones) and other guys really stepped up. I was just there to clean it up."

Marbury scored 30 points and Tony Delk added 17 off the bench for the Suns, who had a three-game winning streak snapped.

Phoenix's Bo Outlaw scored 11 points and reserve Rodney Rogers added 10. Mario scored just nine points on 4-of-10 shooting but collected 10 rebounds and five assists.