MIAMI — Dwyane Wade had a message for his team at halftime. Lose this game, he said, and it will linger for the remainder of the season.

It was a personal pep talk more than anything else.

Wade scored 41 points, 29 in the second half — outscoring Washington by two points over the final 24 minutes — and the Miami Heat remained in first place in the Southeast Division by holding off the Wizards, 90-76, last night.

"Second half, we just came out with a sense of urgency," Wade said. "We didn't want to lose this game. When you've got a team that's not playing as well and in disarray, you've got to take advantage of it."

It's the second time Wade has topped 40 this season, both against Washington: He scored 40 last Wednesday in the nation's capital.

Michael Beasley scored 15 points and Mario Chalmers added 13, including a 3-pointer that put Miami up by eight with 1:47 remaining. The Heat are 6-1 for the first time in a decade, matching the best seven-game start in franchise history.

MAGIC 93, BOBCATS 81

Dwight Howard had 15 points and 10 rebounds, Vince Carter scored 15 in his return from a sprained ankle, and visiting Orlando bounced back from a 28-point loss two nights ago. Before the game, Howard was fined $15,000 by the NBA for publicly criticizing officials on his blog.

TRAIL BLAZERS 93, GRIZZLIES 79

Brandon Roy scored 20 points, LaMarcus Aldridge added 16 points and 12 rebounds, and visiting Portland Trail defeated Memphis for its third straight.

NUGGETS 90, BULLS 89

Chauncey Billups hit the go-ahead free throw with six-tenths of a second left as visiting Denver held on after a potential winning jumper by Chicago's Brad Miller was overturned following a replay.

MAVERICKS 121, ROCKETS 103

Jason Terry scored 24 points and host Dallas overcame an early 17-point deficit and took the lead for good at 65-64 on Dirk Nowitzki's basket to start the second half in beating Houston.

KINGS 101, THUNDER 98

Jason Thompson had 21 points and 14 rebounds to help host Sacramento (4-4) beat Oklahoma City to reach the .500 mark for the first time since Dec. 4, 2006.