WASHINGTON -- Even with the teams "X-factor" suspended, the Washington Wizards had a No. 42 sitting next to the bench. The 57-year-old with greying hair couldnt box out or grab a rebound, but owner Ted Leonsis waved his red towel and egged on a cheering crowd that chanted "Free Nene!" The Wizards did just fine without the suspended Brazilian forward. They scored the first 14 points and beat the Chicago Bulls 98-89 on Sunday to take a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference series. "I thought it was pretty hilarious that Ted had Nenes jersey on," Wizards guard Bradley Beal said. "It kind of threw me off for a minute, but then I looked and seen it was Ted." Nene or not, the Wizards did what theyve done all series: Take a quick lead and force the Bulls to use up energy trying to catch up. It was 15-8 in Game 3, 29-12 in Game 2, 19-13 in Game 1. Washington, seeking to win a playoff series for only the third time since the 1970s, can finish off the Bulls on the road in Game 5 on Tuesday night. "We keep seeing this same kind of start for the last couple of games, and its frustrating," said Taj Gibson, who came off the bench to lead the Bulls with a career-high 32 points. "It seems like at times we get overhyped with just thinking were going to be OK, were just that good. But in this league its not about how talented you are, its about how hard you work and how much effort you put when you start the game off, and I dont think we did that." Nene was suspended for the game after grabbing Jimmy Butlers head in the fourth quarter of the Wizards Game 3 loss. Wall called Nene the "X-factor" this week, and for good reason: Since the March 2012 trade that brought Nene to D.C., Washington is 65-63 when he plays and 21-41 when he doesnt. That said, the club did hold its own by winning 12 of 21 when Nene went down with a knee injury late in the regular season, an absence coach Randy Wittman said might have been a "blessing in disguise" that helped prepare them for Sunday. "I saw our guys bond together," Wittman said. "Like, Thats OK, all right. Big fellows not going to be here, but thats OK. And we were in tune right from the start." Trevor Ariza, getting some of the early looks that might have gone to Nene, scored a career playoff-high 30 points, making 6 of 10 3-pointers. Beal had 18 points, and John Wall added 15 points and 10 assists for the Wizards, who forced 16 turnovers and committed only six. "I think were a smart enough group to understand that when one of your pieces goes down, you have to find ways and will to win," Ariza said. "Tonight was my night to take on the scoring load." Gibson went 13 for 16 from the field for Chicago, but his teammates combined to go 22 for 62. He made more field goals in the first half (8) than the rest of the Bulls combined (7). Mike Dunleavy, who scored 35 points in Game 3, scored only six. Dunleavy jammed his left thumb attempting to take a charge in the fourth quarter. The thumb was swollen and was X-rayed after the game, but he said he didnt think it was broken. "It probably doesnt really matter," he said. "Its my left hand and its not going to make a difference for me." Chicagos Kirk Hinrich committed four turnovers, and NBA Defensive Player of the Year Joakim Noah had a quiet 10 points and 15 rebounds against the Nene-less frontcourt. Washington stormed to a 14-0 lead, with Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau calling a timeout after each Wizards "touchdown." "Very disappointing to get in a hole like that," Thibodeau said. "I put that on me, and Ive got to get it right. ... Its got to change or our season will be over." Trevor Booker started in Nenes spot and had nine rebounds and three blocks. Beal called Booker "a huge X-factor" -- apparently the Wizards are cornering the market on that particular commodity. "Just because they didnt have Nene," Gibson said, "they just came out and played even harder." Notes: Arizas six 3-pointers tied a Wizards playoff record. ... Wittman, who played during the Detroit Pistons "Bad Boys" era, was asked to compare todays game to those rough-and-tumble days. "Not even close," Wittman said. "Its like sixth-grade flag football compared to NFL tackle football." Air Max 720 Wholesale Uk . Goergl, the 2011 world champion, started 28th after the other top contenders had already gone down but had the fastest time at each interval. Goergl finished the demanding 3-kilometre Kaelberloch course in 1 minute, 47. Cheap Air Max 90 Trainers . -- The Jacksonville Jaguars are bringing back quarterback Chad Henne -- and making him the starter. http://www.fakeairmaxukoutlet.com/best-max-97-trainers-cheap-uk.html .com) - The Los Angeles Kings werent playing their best hockey before the league went on break during the Winter Olympics. Air Max 95 Wholesale Uk . - Even with a new coach, the Denver Nuggets still love to push the basketball. Nike Air Max Tn Cheap Uk . He has spent much of his adult life trying to give back to his native South Sudan, the war-torn African nation the Cavaliers forward and his family fled when he was a young boy.OAKLAND, Calif. -- With one drive to determine whether Tennessee or Oakland would move right into the thick of the AFC playoff race, Ryan Fitzpatrick stepped up for the Titans. Fitzpatrick threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Kendall Wright with 10 seconds remaining to cap a mistake-free performance that led Tennessee to a 23-19 victory over the Raiders on Sunday. "That would have been a big, big loss for us in terms of what the rest of the season was going to look like," Fitzpatrick said. "We knew this was a gotta-have-it drive at the end of the game and the guys really stepped up." Fitzpatrick also threw a 54-yard TD pass to Justin Hunter and Rob Bironas added three field goals to give Tennessee (5-6) its second win in seven games. But despite the recent slump, the Titans find themselves in a six-way tie for the final playoff spot in the AFC. "We knew going into this one, in our world it was a playoff game," coach Mike Munchak said. "We couldnt fall to 4-7, we knew that. Im sure they felt the same way, so that was a huge drive." The Raiders (4-7) missed a chance to get into that group as the defence failed to hold onto a late lead and Sebastian Janikowski missed two field goals. After Bironas put Tennessee up 16-12 with his third field goal, Matt McGloin led the Raiders on a 75-yard scoring drive. He completed all four attempts and accounted for all but 1 yard on the drive, capping it with a 27-yard pass to Marcel Reece with 6:10 to play. Fitzpatrick calmly moved Tennessee downfield, completing eight of 10 passes. Then facing third-and-goal from the 10, Fitzpatrick found Wright, who beat Tracy Porter on an out pattern from the slot and fell into the end zone for the winning score. "Ryan made a great throw," Wright said. "All I had to do was look it in and get in the end zone. Before the start of that drive we said we werent going to let Rob Bironas come out here and kick a field goal to tie it up. We wanted to go down there and score seven. Wed been in this predicament a lot this season where we had the ball and we couldnt finish. We finally put it together and finished today." The play flittingly came on third down, when Fitzpatrick was at his best on his 31st birthday. He converted 10 of 18 third downs in the game, often in long-yardage situations in his best game yet in place of the injured Jake Locker. He completed 30 of 42 passes for 320 yards --none bigger than the throw to Wright. Hunter and Wright were his favourite targetts, gaining 109 and 103 yards, respectively.dddddddddddd "They just out-executed us, plain and simple," Porter said. "Whether it was game plan, guys out of position on certain things, coverages, landmarks, were supposed to get on the quarterback. We were just out-executed." Fitzpatrick and the Titans capitalized on a blown assignment for the first touchdown of the game on the opening drive of the third quarter. Hunter was left wide open and caught a pass 17 yards downfield before juking Phillip Adams and Brandian Ross and racing to the end zone for the score that put Tennessee up 13-9. The Raiders answered with a good drive before stalling at the 30. Janikowski missed his second field goal as his season-long struggles continue as he adjusts to new holder Marquette King after the departure of longtime mate Shane Lechler in the off-season. McGloin, an undrafted rookie out of Penn State, put the Raiders in position for a second straight win after his three-touchdown, no-interception performance last week in Houston. He completed 19 of 32 passes for 260 yards to earn a third start Thursday in Dallas, but also threw an interception that set up Tennessees second field goal. "Up and down day," McGloin said. "Youre going to have days like that. I thought we missed on a couple of opportunities offensively, but well go back to the drawing board." It was an ugly first half that featured five field goals, a blocked punt, a missed chip shot, a number of dropped passes, a poorly thrown interception and 12 penalties for 135 yards. The Raiders led 9-6 at the break, but could have had an even bigger advantage after Jeremy Stewart blocked Brett Kerns punt with 11 seconds left. McGloin threw a 23-yard pass to Rod Streater on the next play, but Janikowski pushed a 32-yard field goal wide left. That was his second miss from inside 40 yards this season after making 85 of 86 the previous five seasons. "Were not making them, not consistently enough," Allen said. "We have to continue to work to get better there." NOTES: The Titans had two 100-yard receivers and a 300-yard passer in the same game for the first time since Dec. 19, 2004, in a loss to Oakland. ... Raiders TE Mychal Rivera left in the first half with a concussion after a helmet-to-helmet hit from Titans S Michael Griffin. Oakland CB Mike Jenkins (concussion) and LB Kevin Burnett (bruised quad) and Tennessee TE Craig Stevens (concussion) also left with injuries. ' ' '