First half flop dooms Indiana Pacers against Washington Wizards

The Bad

Guarding the Wizards, especially Bradley Beal, was the issue tonight. The Pacers gave up 80, yes 80, points in the first half. Watching the game, it didn’t even seem that the issue was Pacers turnovers either. The Wizards just kept hitting shots and growing the lead with ease in the first half. I know the Pacers wanted to get up and down the court to get some transition buckets, but the Wizards were on fire in the first half, and the Pacers just could not dig out of that hole.

Beal in particular was terrific. Look at this final stat line:

He has been a thorn for the Pacers for many seasons, and Saturday night was no different. When he is on a roll, he’s hard to stop, especially when he starts dancing after made triples. His back-to-back three pointers about halfway through the 4th quarter were the dagger that ended the Pacers comeback chances.