Magic at Pacers
THE STORY: The Indiana Pacers find themselves in the role of favorites as they open the Eastern Conference playoffs against the visiting Orlando Magic on Saturday. Third-seeded Indiana finished the season strong while sixth-seeded Orlando struggled down the stretch, particularly after losing star center Dwight Howard to season-ending back surgery. The Pacers are 12-3 in April and have multiple weapons to make up for a lack of star power. The Magic lost four of their final five regular-season outings.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPN
ABOUT THE MAGIC (37-29): Not having Howard is a huge blow as the Pacers had trouble handling him. Howard averaged 23.8 points and 10.8 rebounds while shooting 68.5 percent from the field against Indiana. Glen Davis is expected to start at center in Game 1 after injuring an ankle on Wednesday. Orlando will likely rely on its long-range shooting (the Magic led the NBA in made 3s) to help compensate for the loss of its interior edge. Forward Ryan Anderson made a league-high 166 3-pointers and guard J.J. Redick (41.8 percent) is also capable of hitting them in bunches. Forward Hedo Turkoglu is back from facial fractures and had a team-high 18 points in Thursday’s regular-season finale against Memphis.
ABOUT THE PACERS (42-24): Balance is the key for Indiana, which has five players averaging in double figures and eight players averaging 8.9 points or better. Forward Danny Granger averages a team-leading 18.7 points and he has raised his level of play significantly down the stretch by scoring at a 21.6 clip in April. Center Roy Hibbert could be in line for a big series with Howard sidelined. Hibbert averaged just 10.8 points and 6.8 rebounds against Howard in the regular season. Forward David West also struggled against Orlando, averaging just seven points and shooting 36.8 percent. Darren Collison and George Hill give Indiana two solid point guard options with Hill playing better heading into the postseason.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Orlando won three of the four regular-season meetings.
2. The Magic is making their sixth consecutive playoff appearance; Indiana is in for the second straight season after a five-year drought.
3. Pacers guard Leandro Barbosa (ankle) is a game-time decision.