INDIANAPOLIS — The Washington Wizards’ dominance on the road this postseason was bound to end at some point. Indiana Pacers center and former Georgetown star Roy Hibbert is too talented to continue playing as awful as he had been this postseason. And, eventually, John Wall’s shooting struggles were going to cost his team.
On Wednesday night, everything that had worked in the Wizards’ favor suddenly swung the opposite direction, resulting in an 86-82 loss that sent the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinals series back to Washington tied at a game apiece. The loss at Bankers Life Fieldhouse snapped a four-game road winning streak.
Wall said the Wizards wanted to be “greedy” and win both games, but Hibbert wasn’t going to allow that to happen, as he awoke from a months-long slumber to scored 28 points, grab nine rebounds and block two shots.
Marcin Gortat held up his end of the matchup with Hibbert, leading the Wizards with a team-high 21 points and 11 rebounds, but Wall had his worst game of the playoffs, finishing with six points on 2-of-13 shooting. Throughout this postseason, Wall had managed to direct his team to wins even when his shots weren’t falling. But Wednesday, his repeated misses were too much to overcome in a low possession game that favored the Pacers’ deliberate tempo.
With the Wizards trailing 82-79 late, Wall took two ill-advised three-pointers in the final minutes, going for a home run play instead of running a set. Then, with the Wizards trailing by three in the final minute, Wall attempted to drive to the basket but was stripped by George Hill, which set up a long jumper by Lance Stephenson. Stephenson wiggled while an adoring audience applauded.
Bradley Beal scored 17 points, but the Pacers gave him different looks on defense to prevent him from taking over. All-star swingman Paul George and Stephenson both split time guarding Beal and used physical tactics on both ends of the floor to fluster the 20-year-old shooting guard. While fighting for an offensive rebound on one possession, Stephenson grabbed Beal by the arm and slung him to the floor.
The Pacers also shut down Trevor Ariza, limiting him to just six points after he hit six three-pointers in Game 1. Ariza was effective, however, in keeping George quiet through the first three quarters. But George scored five of his 11 points in the final period, pushing past Ariza to drive the lane for a huge two-handed dunk that put Indiana ahead, 80-77.
Hibbert also was an intimidating presence on the defensive end as he shut down Wall’s drives to the basket. Indiana limited the Wizards to just five three-pointers and one fast break point.
With his college coach, John Thompson III, and agent, David Falk, sitting baseline, Hibbert had 17 points by halftime, surpassing his previous high for a game this postseason (13). Hibbert went without any points or rebounds in Game 1, prompting David West and Rasual Butler to hold a private meeting in the locker room immediately after the game. The intervention clearly worked.
Hibbert’s struggles in the postseason have fueled many rumors about possible off-court friction between Hibbert and fellow all-star George. George addressed the speculation on his Twitter account Tuesday, denying any problems while posting an old photograph of him fishing with Hibbert and teammate George Hill.
Pacers Coach Frank Vogel said before the game that his players have been laughing about the supposed problems within the locker room. The day before, Vogel blamed himself for not getting Hibbert enough touches on offense. Indiana made a concerted effort to get Hibbert involved after he won the opening the tip. Hibbert had a short jumper and a three-point play to get the Pacers started on a 7-0 run and made a jump hook to put his team up, 15-7.
The Wizards fought back but appeared to be in danger when Nene stepped on the back of Hill’s shoe and twisted his left ankle and left knee before falling to the floor. Nene missed 22 games this season because of a sprained left knee and immediately raised concerns as he limped to the bench, and later, the locker room.
With Nene gone, the Wizards didn’t fold, relying on an aggressive Gortat to carry them. Gortat silenced the crowd when Wall found him cutting to the basket and he dunked over Pacers reserve Ian Mahinmi. Afterward, Gortat stared at the fans and snarled back on defense. Still, they failed to end the first quarter with a lead for the first time this postseason
Nene eventually returned after having his left ankle re-taped and gave the Wizards a 39-37 lead with a spot-up jumper. Nene finished with 14 points