The No. 9 seed Indiana Pacers will face the No. 8 Washington Wizards in the NBA play-in tournament on Thursday night to decide who will be the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The winner of Pacers vs. Wizards will head on to face the No. 1 seeded Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the playoffs.
The Pacers made easy work of No. 10 Charlotte Hornets at home on Tuesday night in a 144-117 win. It really wasn’t close the entire game. Indiana was without G Caris LeVert, who will remain sidelined Thursday while in health and safety protocols. Losing LeVert didn’t matter much. The Pacers shot 55/45/80 against the Hornets and 8 players scored in double figures, including Doug McDermott, who had 16 in the first quarter. Indy looked dangerous, not like the team we saw compete most of the regular season.
The Wizards were up at halftime vs. the Celtics but Boston went on a run in the third quarter and never looked back. Washington couldn’t hit an outside shot and defense was an issue on Jayson Tatum. So the Wizards will face the Pacers, a team they swept in the regular season 3-0.
Pacers vs. Wizards play-in tournament game time
The game will take place on Thursday, 8 p.m. ET. The Wizards will host the Pacers and the game will be broadcasted nationally on TNT.
Pacers vs. Wizards opening odds
Spread: Wizards -3.5
Over/Under: TBD
Moneyline: Wizards -162, Pacers +132
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