Undermanned Wizards edge poor-shooting Celtics

The Boston Celtics became the latest NBA contender to surprisingly come up short against one of the league's worst teams, losing 99-94 to the Washington Wizards, who got 27 points from Ish Smith to lead a depleted lineup Monday night.

While the Celtics had won their previous two games -- against also-rans Atlanta and Chicago -- they couldn't overcome poor shooting, a slow start and a whole lot of Smith.

One game after pouring in a career-high 32 points as a reserve, Smith again came off the bench to lead the Wizards. The 31-year-old guard even heard "M-V-P!" chants while going 1-for-2 at the foul line in the fourth quarter, when he scored 14 of his points, including 10 straight for the Wizards during one 5-for-5 shooting stretch.

That allowed Washington to regain an edge after an 11-point halftime lead had dwindled to zero when Jaylen Brown's 3-pointer made it 80-all with 8 minutes left.

That was a rare bright spot for Brown and Boston, though. He scored 23 points but shot 7 for 22, Marcus Smart was 3 for 14, Jayson Tatum was 8 for 20, and Gordon Hayward was 4 for 11, including an air ball on a wide-open 3 attempt with under 90 seconds remaining.

Boston entered the day second in the Eastern Conference at 25-8. Washington, in contrast, came in at 11-24, fewer wins than all but three teams in the 15-club East.

Washington coach Scott Brooks is missing the top six players on his roster to injuries. That includes All-Stars Bradley Beal (out for the fifth time in the last six games because of a sore right leg) and John Wall (sidelined all season so far after Achilles surgery), starters Rui Hachimura and Thomas Bryant, and leading subs Davis Bertans and Moe Wagner.