Washington Wizards’ Kyle Kuzma during the first half of an NBA game against the Toronto Raptors, Thursday, March 2, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Kyle Kuzma scored the first 10 points of the game and finished with a total of 30, Kristaps Porzingis added 25 points and the Washington Wizards beat the Toronto Raptors 119-108 on Thursday in a matchup between the contenders NBA Eastern Conference to enter the playoffs.

Daniel Gafford scored 18 points and Delon Wright had 11 assists for the Wizards (30-32), who moved within percentage points of the ninth-ranked Raptors (31-33) in the East.

OG Anunoby scored 26 points and Jakob Poeltl had 23 points and 13 rebounds for the Raptors, who had won five of their last six games.

Washington beat Toronto at home in the regular season for the first time since Feb. 1, 2018, ending a six-game winning streak for the Raptors at Capital One Arena.

Kuzma essentially tipped the odds in his team’s favor early in the fourth quarter when he found Corey Kispert for a 3-pointer, hit his own 3-pointer and a layup to wrap up a 12-2 run that left him ‘raised to 99-80. The Raptors made a late effort, but the closest was closing the gap to eight points.

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