Pacers Host Hornets To Open Play-In Tournament
The Indiana Pacers will host the Charlotte Hornets at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Tuesday evening.
The Pacers (34-38) know they must win this game to have a shot at reaching the playoffs, though this will be the first of two games they have to win in the play-in tournament to come away with a postseason berth. The Pacers won the final game of the season Sunday, posting a 125-113 win over the Toronto Raptors. Oshae Brissett had an excellent performance for the Pacers and posted 31 points to go along with 10 rebounds and three assists. Domantas Sabonis stuffed the stat sheet in his return and finished with 25 points, 16 rebounds, five assists and three steals. Doug McDermott had 20 points, and Caris LeVert had 13 points before exiting the game. T.J. McConnell had 12 points and 17 assists off the bench. Domantas Sabonis will be the player to watch for the Pacers, as he paced the team in both rebounds (12.0) and assists (6.7) per game this season while scoring 20.3 points per contest. Malcolm Brogdon was the team's leading scorer with 21.2 points per tilt. Indiana posted a 13-23 mark at home.
Indiana should have Caris LeVert (migraine) and Malcolm Brogdon (hamstring) available for this game, but starters T.J. Warren (foot) and Myles Turner (toe) are both expected to miss out. Edmond Summer (knee) and Aaron Holiday (toe) are also questionable, while Jeremy Lamb (knee) is out as well.
The Hornets (33-39) enter this game as the 10th seed of the Eastern Conference but ended the season on a down note, suffering a 115-110 loss to the Washington Wizards on Sunday. Terry Rozier led the Hornets with 22 points, complementing them with nine rebounds, nine assists and three steals. Lonzo Ball provided 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Miles Bridges supplied 17 points, four rebounds and four blocks. Devonte' Graham turned in 15 points, two rebounds, two assists and one steal. Jalen McDaniels compiled 13 points, four rebounds and two assists. P.J. Washington and Cody Zeller furnished 11 points each, with Washington also pulling down nine rebounds. Rozier, Ball and Washington are the key players to watch for Charlotte, with Ball lobbying for the Rookie Of The Year Award, while Rozier has had a career-best season averaging 20.4 points per game. The Hornets had a 15-21 record on the road in 2020-21.
Gordon Hayward (foot) and Cody Martin (ankle) are both sidelined for this contest due to injuries.
The Pacers (34-38) know they must win this game to have a shot at reaching the playoffs, though this will be the first of two games they have to win in the play-in tournament to come away with a postseason berth. The Pacers won the final game of the season Sunday, posting a 125-113 win over the Toronto Raptors. Oshae Brissett had an excellent performance for the Pacers and posted 31 points to go along with 10 rebounds and three assists. Domantas Sabonis stuffed the stat sheet in his return and finished with 25 points, 16 rebounds, five assists and three steals. Doug McDermott had 20 points, and Caris LeVert had 13 points before exiting the game. T.J. McConnell had 12 points and 17 assists off the bench. Domantas Sabonis will be the player to watch for the Pacers, as he paced the team in both rebounds (12.0) and assists (6.7) per game this season while scoring 20.3 points per contest. Malcolm Brogdon was the team's leading scorer with 21.2 points per tilt. Indiana posted a 13-23 mark at home.
Indiana should have Caris LeVert (migraine) and Malcolm Brogdon (hamstring) available for this game, but starters T.J. Warren (foot) and Myles Turner (toe) are both expected to miss out. Edmond Summer (knee) and Aaron Holiday (toe) are also questionable, while Jeremy Lamb (knee) is out as well.
The Hornets (33-39) enter this game as the 10th seed of the Eastern Conference but ended the season on a down note, suffering a 115-110 loss to the Washington Wizards on Sunday. Terry Rozier led the Hornets with 22 points, complementing them with nine rebounds, nine assists and three steals. Lonzo Ball provided 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Miles Bridges supplied 17 points, four rebounds and four blocks. Devonte' Graham turned in 15 points, two rebounds, two assists and one steal. Jalen McDaniels compiled 13 points, four rebounds and two assists. P.J. Washington and Cody Zeller furnished 11 points each, with Washington also pulling down nine rebounds. Rozier, Ball and Washington are the key players to watch for Charlotte, with Ball lobbying for the Rookie Of The Year Award, while Rozier has had a career-best season averaging 20.4 points per game. The Hornets had a 15-21 record on the road in 2020-21.
Gordon Hayward (foot) and Cody Martin (ankle) are both sidelined for this contest due to injuries.
Wizards, Celtics Clash For Play-In
By Dan Bruno
The Boston Celtics play host to the Indiana Pacers at TD Garden on Tuesday evening.
The Wizards finished the regular season eighth in the East, while the Celtics finished in the seventh spot, but their paths to the playoffs require one more step, as they face-off for sole possession of the seventh spot, while the loser will have one more chance, as they will take on the winner of the play-in game between the ninth and 10th seeds.
The Celtics got the better of the Wizards by taking the season series two games to one. However, each time the home team came out victorious, pointing to an advantage for the Celtics in the play-in.
Jayson Tatum leads the Celtics, averaging 26.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.2 steals, in 36 minutes per game. Kemba Walker has been playing well, averaging 19.3 points, 4.9 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.1 steals, while Marcus Smart is averaging 13.1 points, 5.7 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game. Jaylen Brown (wrist) remans out.
Meanwhile, Russell Westbrook has been an absolute force for the Wizards, averaging 22.2 points, 11.7 assists, 11.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals, in 36 minutes per game. Bradley Beal missed a week of action before returning for the Wizards' most recent contest and final game of the season, where he dropped 25 points, in 34 minutes.
The Wizards finished the regular season eighth in the East, while the Celtics finished in the seventh spot, but their paths to the playoffs require one more step, as they face-off for sole possession of the seventh spot, while the loser will have one more chance, as they will take on the winner of the play-in game between the ninth and 10th seeds.
The Celtics got the better of the Wizards by taking the season series two games to one. However, each time the home team came out victorious, pointing to an advantage for the Celtics in the play-in.
Jayson Tatum leads the Celtics, averaging 26.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.2 steals, in 36 minutes per game. Kemba Walker has been playing well, averaging 19.3 points, 4.9 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.1 steals, while Marcus Smart is averaging 13.1 points, 5.7 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game. Jaylen Brown (wrist) remans out.
Meanwhile, Russell Westbrook has been an absolute force for the Wizards, averaging 22.2 points, 11.7 assists, 11.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals, in 36 minutes per game. Bradley Beal missed a week of action before returning for the Wizards' most recent contest and final game of the season, where he dropped 25 points, in 34 minutes.