John Wall's huge 3rd quarter helps Wizards blowout Pacers, force Game 6
The Washington Wizards weren't quite ready to call it a season. Coming off of three consecutive losses and facing elimination on the road in Game 5 on Tuesday, the Wizards answered the call, destroying a lifeless Indiana Pacers team 102-79.
It was quite the turnabout, considering the Pacers embarrassed Washington 85-63 in Game 3, one of the lowest scoring outputs in modern history, and then stormed to a massive comeback in Game 4. And my, was it thorough - the Wizards shot better (49.4 percent to 39.5 percent), won the battle on the glass (a ridiculous 61-23 in total rebounds), and won all four quarters. Yes, even the third (31-14), which had given them fits in this series.
The teams will return to Washington for Game 6 on Thursday, with tip-off time still to be determined.
Star Performer
While Marcin Gortat brought a whole lot of thunder in the first half, it was team superstar John Wall who delivered the biggest daggers. Wall scored 27 points on 11-of-20 shooting with five rebounds and five assists, including a ridiculous 17 points in the third quarter.
Wall owes Gortat and Nene a debt of gratitude for their tricky and often bone-crunching screens, which help free Wall up for easy mid-range jumpers and also provide him seams to the rim, though he opted out of those more often than not on Tuesday.
[Courtesy ESPN]
In any case, it appears his eye is now just fine, thanks.
Turning Point
Wall outscored the entire Pacers team in the third quarter. No, seriously. Wall's 17 points in the frame topped the 14 that Indiana put up, helping the Wizards to a 17-point edge in the quarter and a 24-point lead overall entering the fourth. There was no looking back from there, and the Pacers pretty clearly checked out as Wall heated up.
Now, does this mean it's a turning point in the series? With how fragile the Pacers have often seemed throughout these playoffs, it wouldn't be surprising to see them come out completely flat in Game 6 in Washington on Thursday. Then again, a repeat of Game 3 wouldn't surprise, either. There's just no telling with this team.
Highlight Reel
The Wizards really picked up the highlight pace in this one, finally providing us a highlight reel in what had been a pretty displeasing series, aesthetically, through five games.
The Pacers had some highlights of their own, though:
Pacers highlight reel through three quarters: https://t.co/afPbZq5XmH
— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) May 14, 2014
We kid. There was one Pacers highlight:
Quote of the Game
"It was just fun to be in the game. Everything works. When everything works, you feel immortal." - Marcin Gortat, following the game. That wasn't all though:
Gortat just told TNT he was offensive decoy the last two games, and Nene took one for the team tonight
— Rashad Mobley (@rashad20) May 14, 2014
Ernie Johnson: "What about that beard ?" Marcin Gortat: "Oh man, I'm still playing basketball but I still want to be like president Lincoln"
— Alex Biggerstaff (@AlexBiggerstaff) May 14, 2014
Series at a Glance
Game 1: WAS 102, IND 96 (Wizards lead 1-0)
Game 2: IND 86, WAS 82 (Series tied 1-1)
Game 3: IND 85 WAS 63 (Pacers lead 2-1)
Game 4: IND 95, WAS 92 (Pacers lead 3-1)
Game 5: WAS 102, IND 79 (Pacers lead 3-2)
Game 6: Thursday, May 15 - TBD (ESPN)
Game 7*: Sunday, May 18 - TBD