Washington – The Washington Wizards didn’t fix their deficiencies during their Wednesday night victory over the besieged San Antonio Spurs. They’ll wake up another day in the league’s basement where all the bad defensive teams dwell and will require more time to figure out how something as fundamental as keeping the opponent from scoring at will has muddled the start of the season.

Nothing about Wednesday night cured Washington’s warts, but that didn’t mean its 138-132 win, another absurdly high scoring matchup, lacked splendor.

For fans inside Capital One Arena, instead of wasting energy wondering if the Wizards would get consistent stops – they didn’t. The team presented its supporters with more entertaining wagers.

Like, would Bradley Beal ever miss a shot in the third quarter? Or how many teammates would Ish Smith chest-bump after hitting one of his three triples of the game? And just how crazy would the end of this game get?

The Wizards (4-8) led 129-117 with less than three minutes to play but found themselves desperately holding on to a two-point advantage in the final 15 seconds. Beal replenished the lead to four points on the following possession, but the game finally shifted in Washington’s favor when Spurs guard DeMar DeRozan missed both free throws within the last 10 seconds.

Seven Wizards players reached double figures, with three teammates scoring 21 of more points. Beal poured in a game-best 33 points (14 of 24 shooting) to go with four assists and four rebounds. In the third quarter, Beal hit 9 of 9 from the floor and after his outburst, the Wizards maintained a lead, albeit shaky at times.

Smith, the backup point guard, scored 21 points and knocked down a pair of three-pointers in the final quarter. At the 4:32 mark, Smith knocked down an open three after an offensive tap back from rookie Rui Hachimura, then he began ping-ponging off giddy teammates who wanted to celebrate with leaping chest bumps.

San Antonio (5-10) has lost seven in a row while Washington won their second game at home. Heading into the game, Coach Scott Brooks thought the matchup would be as interesting as it panned out, except for far more serious reasons.

“Defensively, it’s getting our concepts down but it’s also understanding – like, to me, tonight is going to be a perfect night for growth,” Brooks said.

His rationale for this growth: the Wizards should have learned from prior mistakes. The teams met Oct. 26 in San Antonio and although the Wizards lost 124-122, they should have a better understanding of what the Spurs want to do on this second time around.

However, growing from past failures may not seem as easy as it sounds since many of the Wizards’ defensive problems have boiled down to their lack of recognition.

They haven’t always remembered the tendencies of their opponents. Although DeRozan loves to pump fake and make defenders leap on cue, Hachimura still left his feet the first time he had DeRozan on a one-on-one. The move tricked Hachimura in committing his second foul after a little over three minutes had expired in the opening quarter.

Also, they haven’t been connected on the defensive end. Again, DeRozan drew a Wizards player into a second foul. However, Troy Brown Jr. only committed the act because Isaiah Thomas, unexpectedly, left his man to jump in front of DeRozan, who promptly got a step on him, headed toward the rim and this move compelled Brown to act.

By halftime, DeRozan had as many free throw attempts (seven) as the Wizards overall, the Spurs completed 26 of their 46 attempts (56.5 percent) and tallied 69 points on the same floor the Wizards were supposed to protect.

“We want to establish a better identity at home,” Brooks said hours before the tip.

It might have taken a while – 24 minutes of the first half – but the Wizards finally gave themselves a home court advantage. To be more exact, Beal gave the Wizards the edge. He never left the court in the third quarter and, he didn’t miss a shot. Beal made nine of the team’s 16 shots and 21 of the 38 points.

Powered by Beal’s outburst opened a lead and the Wizards didn’t need to be all that steady on the defensive end. The Spurs still made 52.7 percent from the floor but for a night, the Wizards’ offense covered the mistakes.