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Pacers blow 13-point third-quarter lead, improve lottery position vs Wizards
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- Pacers blow 13-point third-quarter lead, improve lottery position vs Wizards
Guard Alondes Williams, playing with the Wizards on a 10-day contract, posted 25 points on 9 of 11 shooting and 10 rebounds to lead the Wizards to a 131-118 win over the Pacers on Friday night at the Capital One Center in Washington D.C., giving the Wizards a two-game sweep in the back-to-back between two of the three worst teams in the Eastern Conference.
The Pacers -- playing without starters Pascal Siakam , Ivica Zubac , Aaron Nesmith and Andrew Nembhard due to injuries or injury management -- fell to 15-42 and sit alone in last place, though their two losses certainly help their draft lottery odds. Their 42 losses guarantee them a losing season with 25 games left in the regular season. The Wizards improved to 16-39.
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Guard Sharife Cooper added 18 points for the Wizards. Center Tristan Vukcevic and guard Tre Johnson had 14 points each. Center Jay Huff scored 22 points for the Pacers in just 16 minutes. Guard Quenton Jackson added 21 points. Center Micah Potter had 18 points. Forward Jarace Walker posted his third double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds to with six assists. Guard Taelon Peter and forward Kobe Brown added 12 points each.
Here are three observations.
Pacers hot from 3 in first half, frigid in second half
The Pacers didn't have a lot of offensive firepower on the floor with most of their key pieces missing, but they were hitting so many first-half 3s it didn't matter. In the second half, however, they lost the shooting touch entirely and added turnovers that ultimately led to defeat.
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Huff was leading the charge but he wasn't the only shooter who was hot. The Pacers made 9 of their 17 3-point attempts in a 41-point second quarter with Huff hitting three of those 3-pointers and Potter and Kobe Brown hitting two each. The Pacers posted 1.44 points per possession in the period and led 68-57 at the end of the first half with 12 3-pointers overall before the break.
But then the Pacers hit a drought and it was a long one. They missed their first 12 3-pointers of the second half and made just 2 of 15 third-quarter 3-pointers. After trailing by as many as 15 points in the third quarter, the Wizards took a two-point lead at one point in the third quarter and the game was tied at 92 through three. Then the Wizards outscored the Pacers 39-26 in the fourth quarter to pull away late, ultimately winning the second half 74-50.
The Pacers were 20 of 43 from the floor after the break but just 6 of 22 from 3-point range and committed 12 of their 21 turnovers after the break. The Wizards were 31 of 48 from the floor (64.6%) after the break and scored 20 points off turnovers to the Pacers four. The Wizards finished with 30 points off turnovers for the game, 18 fast-break points and 78 points in the paint.
"There were not as many (turnovers) as last night," Carlisle said. "But almost equal damage. You have to give Washington credit. They pressured the ball, they did some things, but some of them were also unforced."
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Jay Huff goes off in second quarter
Washington D.C. is one of the most meaningful stops on the NBA circuit for Huff. He grew up in Durham, N.C., which is just four hours away and played his college ball at Virginia, just two hours away. But more importantly, he spent time on a two-way deal with Washington when he played seven games with the Wizards and nine with the Capital City Go-Go in the G-League.
So Huff was motivated and played that way, especially in the second quarter when he drilled three 3-pointers. By halftime, the Pacers center and the only Pacers player to play in every game this season scored 18 points on 6 of 7 shooting including 5 of 6 from 3-point range in just 9 minutes and 18 seconds of action.
He quieted down in the second half but still finished with 22 points in 16 minutes on 8 of 11 shooting including 5 of 8 from 3-point range. The Pacers were +12 in his minutes.
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Quenton Jackson also productive in return to D.C.
Quenton Jackson was on a two-way contract with the Wizards in 2022-23 at the same time Huff was and he too seemed motivated to be in the building. Jackson wasn't active on Thursday night for two-way reasons as he approaches his limit for active games, so on Friday he was particularly motivated to make the most of his minutes.
Jackson scored 21 points on 8 of 13 shooting including 1 of 4 from 3-point range, relentlessly attacking the basket with seven of his eight field goals coming in the restricted area. He also grabbed three rebounds and dished out three assists in just 23 minutes.
Dustin Dopirak covers the Pacers all season. Get more coverage on IndyStarTV and with the Pacers Insider newsletter .
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Pacers vs Wizards: Indiana improves lottery position with loss
