Pacers Welcome Wizards

Paul George and the NBA-best Indiana Pacers face the improving Washington Wizards Friday.

The NBA-best Indiana Pacers begin a four-game homestand Friday night, welcoming the Washington Wizards to Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

Tip-off between these Eastern Conference foes is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET.

The Pacers (28-7, 17-1 home) will take to the hardwood looking to shrug off a disappointing loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.

The Hawks jumped out to a 12-0 lead, holding Indiana without a point for almost five minutes. From there, the Pacers struggled to get back in the game, eventually finding themselves on the wrong end of a 98-87 final score.

The defeat marked the Pacers’ 12th straight regular season loss at Phillips Arena, a conundrum that eaves the entire team guessing.

After the defeat, center Roy Hibbert described his performance as “probably one of my worst games,” while his teammates were left bewildered about their own performances.

Shrugging off losses hasn’t been too hard for Frank Vogel’s team this season though. The Pacers have gone 5-1 following a defeat this campaign with the only loss coming on the road against the defending NBA champion Miami Heat in mid-December. Improving to 6-1 may well be on the cards too.

The Wizards (16-17, 9-9 road) have not won in Indiana since April 18, 2007, a stretch that runs to 12 games.

Furthermore, the Pacers have won 14 of the last 17 meetings between the sides dating back to the 2007-08 campaign, including 10 of the last 11.

Indiana comfortably beat the Wizards earlier this season, holding the Wizards to a season-low 73 points on November 29. The Pacers won that game by 20. Such a margin may be difficult to replicate.

Washington has been an improved side this season. Following a 2-7 start to the season, the Wizards have gone 14-10 to move into fifth-place in the Eastern Conference standings, just 1.5 games back of the Hawks in third-place.

Point guard John Wall is averaging 19.7 points and 8.7 assists per game, both career bests. Shooting guard Bradley Beal is adding 17.7 points per game and shooting 44.8 percent from three-point range, good enough for fifth in the Association.

The Wizards won a third-straight road game on Wednesday, defeating the New Orleans Pelicans 102-96 in the Big Easy. That makes it six wins from the last seven away from the Verizon Center.

Winning in Indianapolis is an altogether different prospect though.

The Pacers have dropped just one game in the Circle City this season, a 101-96 loss to the Detroit Pistons on December 16. The team has won six straight home contests since.

Unsurprisingly, a 17-1 record makes Indiana the league’s best home team, as well as the best team period.

Much of the Pacers’ success this season has come on the back of another outstanding season from guard Paul George.

George, who looks a lock to be starting the 2014 NBA All Star Game in New Orleans next month, is average 23.0 points per game, ranking him in the league’s top 10 scorers. He’s also averaging 6.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists and almost two steals per game.

Indiana has won as a team though, with solid performances on a regular basis from the likes of Hibbert, David West, George Hill and Lance Stephenson.

Stephenson has been a revelation in the backcourt, averaging 13.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 5.2 assists per contest. Unfortunately for the Pacers, the breakout player may not be on the court Friday.

Stephenson missed Wednesday’s loss to Atlanta with a knee injury and is questionable for Friday’s contest.

At the other end of the floor, the Wizards will be without forwards Al Harrington (knee) and Glen Rice, Jr. (wrist).

Washington Wizards vs. Indiana Pacers odds for 01/10/2014

With Stephenson’s status questionable, lines have been slow to emerge on this game. BetOnline has kick-started things though, making the Pacers a 9.5-point favorite.

In addition to being almost unbeatable at home this year, the Pacers have also gone 9-1 against Atlantic Division opponents, the one loss coming in a road game against the Toronto Raptors on New Year’s Day.

Conversely, the Wizards are 4-4 against Central Division opponents.

Washington (18-14-1 ATS) has fared better against the spread than Indiana (17-19-0 ATS) this season. The Pacers are 1-4-0 ATS in their last five, but are 6-3-1 ATS in the last 10 games against Washington.

The over/under opened at 186.5.

Both Indiana (21-15-0) and Washington (19-14-0) have favored the over this season, and with such a low starting point the over might seem the sensible bet.

However, the total has gone under in each of the last five Pacer games and five of the club’s last six at home. In addition, the total has gone under in seven of Washington’s last eight visits to Indianapolis.

After Friday night’s game, Indiana and Washington will meet once more this season, with the Wizards hosting the Pacers at the Verizon Center on March 28.

For a full list of today’s NBA odds, click here.

For updated NBA futures odds, click here.

For updated NBA team prop bets, click here.

For updated NBA player prop bets, click here.