Washington Wizards Fall vs. Short-Handed Pacers to End Road Trip

With a chance to right the ship in the final game of the road trip, the Washington Wizards fell flat to close Wednesday night's contest against the Indiana Pacers, falling 114-101, to move to 4-8 overall, including 2-6 away.

Anthony Davis led the way with his third consecutive double-double and sixth of the season with 21 points and 13 rebounds, while Kyshawn George finished with a team-high 25 points and nine rebounds. AJ Dybantsa added 13 points while Trae Young added 15 on 50% shooting. Tre Johnson entered the night missing his last 13 attempts from three over the last two games, yet delivered a bounceback with 15 points on 50% shooting from both the field and three.

Yet Indiana shot over 47% from the floor, while 14 Washington turnovers turned into 24 points proving to be too costly despite the Wizards winning the battle on the boards for the second straight game.

The Wizards nearly doubled up the Pacers on the boards through the first quarter, in addition to turning six offensive rebounds into ten second chance points, to overcome a slow shooting start. The defense tightened up in the second quarter, but that would be short-lived after former Wizards wing Kelly Oubre recorded eight points in the quarter to spark the Pacers' offense, enough to take a 55-50 lead into halftime. The Wizards were able to get a scoring spark from Tre Johnson's offense, delivering the much-needed performance, yet seven combined turnovers from Kyshawn George and AJ Dybantsa loomed large in the Pacers' slim comeback efforts.

The Pacers opened the second half on a 7-2 run and led by as many as eight points twice before Anthony Davis willed the Wizards back within reach, then trailing by one thanks to buckets from Davis and Kyshawn George. Washington would re-take the lead after Trae Young knocked down his second three of the night in the final minute of the third quarter before the two teams entered the fourth quarter tied at 77.

Indiana quickly retook the lead after drilling a three for the first points, followed by Alex Sarr called for a travel to kick off a 12-0 Pacers run to begin the fourth quarter. It was more than enough to put the Wizards away with Indiana holding onto a double digit lead the rest of the way.

After ending a winless road trip, the Wizards return to Capital One Arena to host the Detroit Pistons on Thursday night, marking a chance to avenge Monday night's loss.