Before the start of the season, the Washington Wizards set themselves a goal to reach the Eastern Conference Finals this year.

At the moment, however, it's unlikely they'll even make it to the second round.

After a 130-119 loss in game two against the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night, the Wizards are now down 2-0 in their first-round matchup with the east's number one seed.

The Raptors poured in a franchise record 44 points in the first quarter and raced to a 17-point lead which Washington struggled to erase.

John Wall had a team-high 29 points and tried to keep his team in the contest but his backcourt partner Bradley Beal had a night to forget.

The All-Star was limited to just nine points on 3-of-11 shooting and 1-of-5 from beyond the arc.

As well as his shooting woes, he spent much of the night in foul trouble as he racked up four personal fouls on the night.

The shooting guard was the leading scorer for the Wizards in the regular season, averaging 22.6 points per game whilst shooting 46 percent from the field and 37.5 percent from three-point range.

But those numbers have dipped drastically in the two losses in Toronto where he's shot 3-of-11 from downtown in the two games combined.

In the fourth quarters of the series so far, he's been held to a total of two points on 1-for-7 shooting, including 0-for-4 from three-point territory.

As the team's point guard, Wall says he needs to do a better job of getting his teammate easy looks and says they'll need Beal's production to stand a chance of mounting a comeback.

"He's been our MVP this year, he's held it down a lot while I have been out," John Wall said, per ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk. "He is not going to make excuses about playing the most minutes [of his career] or being fatigued.

"We have to do a better job, and me as a point guard, of getting him involved and trying to find him shots to make it easier on him.

"And I know he will be very tough on himself; he is definitely going to get in the gym and get up extra shots and find ways to be more aggressive.

"We definitely need his scoring and his ability to create for others to make our team better and compete against this team."

Beal played a career-high 36.3 minutes per game this season and featured in all 82 games for the first time in his six years in the league.

The 24-year-old, however, is not looking to use it as an excuse for his poor performances.

"Everybody has played 82 games this year, that is how many you are supposed to play; but at the same time, it does wear on you, you do get tired," he said. "But it's a mental thing, that is not an excuse for me."

Head coach Scott Brooks is confident that Beal will break out of his slump and says they'll have trouble beating Toronto if he doesn't play at his best.

Washington's season is on the line and have a crucial game three coming up on Friday night when the series switches to the nation's capital.