76ers at Pacers
With a definite possibility to move north or south in the standings over the final 10 games, the Indiana Pacers continue their three-game homestand Sunday against the Philadelphia 76ers. Indiana sits one game back of two teams tied for fifth place in the Eastern Conference standings, but only one game up on the eighth spot with the regular season winding down.
The Pacers' current homestand features multiple games against likely lottery teams, but it started with a 125-117 loss to Denver on Friday. Nuggets rising star Nikola Jokic torched the Pacers for 31 points and 17 rebounds, although the 76ers have no such interior force with Joel Embiid (knee) sidelined until the summer. Fellow rookie Dario Saric continued to step up in Embiid's place in Thursday's 10-point win at Chicago, setting a career high with 32 points as Philadelphia improved to 1-2 on its five-game road trip. The teams split a pair of overtime meetings in November with Paul George putting up 54 points in the two outings.
TV: 6 p.m. ET, CSN Philadelphia, Fox Sports Indiana
ABOUT THE 76ERS (27-45): Saric shot 12-of-19 with a pair of 3-pointers and added 10 rebounds against Chicago, while fellow rookie Shawn Long set a career high with 18 points in 19 minutes. T.J. McConnell chipped in 10 points and eight assists and also has 10 steals in the last three games, while backcourt mate Gerald Henderson matched his high for the month with 14 points. Jahlil Okafor (knee) missed his second straight game and is questionable for Sunday, although Richaun Holmes has played well in his place.
ABOUT THE PACERS (36-36): Indiana has lost three of its last four games, allowing at least 100 points in all four of those contests, and the team gave up at least 30 points in all four quarters versus the Nuggets. George (27), Jeff Teague (21) and Myles Turner (20) combined for 68 points as the team shot over 50 percent from the field and a crisp 13-of-24 from the arc. Teague has surpassed his season scoring average (15.3) in four straight games and is 11-of-22 from 3-point range over the last five outings.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Saric has scored at least 10 points in 22 straight games.
2. George's last five games have featured a 39-point effort versus Charlotte and a 37-point performance at Boston.
3. Sixers F Robert Covington is 6-of-23 from long range over the last four games.