For Wizards, a spoiled celebration

Well, so much for a triumphant return.

Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas ended his 66-game layoff from a Nov. 21 knee surgery and made two foul shots to give his team a one-point lead in the final 15 seconds. But it wasn’t enough to help the Wizards hold off a game-winning charge by the Milwaukee Bucks, and they fell 110-109 last night at Verizon Center.

Until the final 1:17 of the game, the Wizards (38-37) led for all but 23 seconds and appeared on their way to ending a two-game skid and clinching their fourth consecutive playoff berth.

But Washington’s 95-85 advantage with nine minutes left to play wasn’t safe. The Bucks mounted a charge to take a 108-107 lead.

Milwaukee’s Michael Redd missed a 3-pointer with 1:01 remaining, and Caron Butler grabbed the rebound and tossed the ball to Arenas, who brought the ball up court.

Arenas passed to Butler but got the ball back and attempted a 20-footer over Ramon Sessions. The ball bounced on the rim twice and then fell off for a rebound by Milwaukee (26-48).

With 15 seconds left Arenas got to the foul line and made both shots to give his team 109-108 lead. What would have been a fitting ending for the three-time All-Star never materialized.

The Wizards forced a jump ball with 6.4 seconds left, and Butler outleaped Sessions to win the tip and tapped it toward Antawn Jamison along the right sideline. Jamison leaped to save the ball and, before falling into the courtside fans, swatted it ahead to Antonio Daniels, who streaked up the court.

But the ball slipped through Daniels’ hands, and Sessions scooped it up and promptly called a timeout with 1.1 seconds left. Jamison left the game with a sprained right shoulder after his dive.

Coming out of the break, the Bucks’ Royal Ivey inbounded the ball to Andrew Bogut, who caught the ball in midair and zipped it to the perimeter to Sessions.

Sessions, who has spent much of this season in the NBA Development League and had played in just seven games, caught the ball and beat the buzzer with a high-arcing 19-footer over Arenas.

“That’s probably one of the worst ways to lose in this league,” Wizards coach Eddie Jordan said.

Because Toronto lost at Atlanta, the Wizards are in a three-way tie for fifth in the Eastern Conference playoff race with the Raptors and Philadelphia.

Arenas, who hastily left Verizon Center without speaking to reporters, made his return one day shy of a year from the date his 2007 season ended because of a torn lateral meniscus. He had surgery to repair the knee and worked rigorously during the summer to return for this season.

But during his rehabilitation, Arenas tore the medial meniscus in the same knee, and he went under the knife again Nov. 21. Without Arenas, the Wizards posted a 35-31 record.

Story Continues →