Wizards at Pacers
The Indiana Pacers are facing an uphill climb as they try to finish a
late run and pilfer an Eastern Conference playoff spot. The Pacers host the Washington Wizards on Tuesday and complete the
regular season with a visit to Memphis on Wednesday.
Indiana has
rattled off five straight victories and is battling the Brooklyn Nets
for the final playoff berth but the Nets hold the tiebreaker. Washington sits in the fifth
position in the East and defeated the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday to top 45
wins for the first time since going 54-28 in 1978-79. “We had a lot of
ups and downs, letting a lot of wins slip away,” point guard John Wall
told reporters. “I feel this was easily a 50-win season, but we’re happy
where we are and the direction that we’re going.” The Wizards will play their final two on the road, finishing up at Cleveland on Wednesday.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (46-34): Washington ended a 12-game road losing streak in the regular-season series with a 97-90 victory at Indiana on Nov. 8. Sunday’s victory over Atlanta was the fifth in six games for the Wizards as they look to build momentum for the postseason. Shooting guard Bradley Beal is playing well by averaging 20 points in April – he has scored 20 or more in four of the six games – and he has scored 15 or more points in each of the last eight contests.
ABOUT THE PACERS (37-43): Indiana faces a dire situation as Brooklyn won the season series to own the tiebreaker edge. The Pacers haven’t lost with forward Paul George in the mix, going 4-0 with the star who broke his right leg eight months ago despite George averaging 10.3 points on 38.2 percent shooting. Coach Frank Vogel told reporters on Monday that George – who has averaged 14.8 minutes since returning – would play approximately 20 minutes per game if Indiana makes the playoffs.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Wall scored a season-high 34 points against the Pacers on March 25 but Indiana pulled out a 103-101 victory.
2. Pacers G C.J. Miles has averaged 27 points and made 11-of-17 3-point attempts over the past two games.
3. Washington C Marcin Gortat has 21 double-doubles, well off his career-best 37 from last season.