Indiana @ Washington preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 5, 2018 ) Washington 111, Indiana 102

The battle for homecourt advantage in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs is crowded at the moment, with the Washington Wizards trying to hold off several teams for the No. 4 spot. The Indiana Pacers, who visit the Wizards on Sunday, are a half-game back for the No. 4 spot and are bouncing back after a pair of ugly losses.

The Pacers dropped the first two games of the road trip at lowly Dallas and Atlanta before recovering to knock off another contender for the No. 4 spot with a 103-96 triumph at Milwaukee on Friday. "We got back to what we are comfortable doing," Indiana point guard Cory Joseph told the team's website after Friday's win. "Victor (Oladipo) got going. When he gets going he puts so much pressure on the defense. He was going downhill, he was finding people, and he got us into a rhythm." The Wizards aren't riding the same kind of momentum into the matchup after coming up just short in back-to-back losses to two teams at or near the top of their respective conferences in Golden State and Toronto. "It was a tough schedule obviously," Wizards small forward Tomas Satoransky told reporters. "A week ago, we said we were only going to have playoff teams against us now. It could be good for us to adjust to playing playoff basketball. Really, I felt that these three games were really physically good for us, especially today, the Raptors. We played a pretty intense game and I think it could be helpful for us in the future."

TV: 6 p.m. ET, FS Indiana, NBCS Washington

ABOUT THE PACERS (35-27): Oladipo led six players in double figures with 21 points on Friday and added seven rebounds and six assists in another strong all-around effort. The first-time All-Star is turning it up at the defensive end as well and is averaging 3.3 steals in four games since the All-Star break. "From the arena, to the players, to the refs, it definitely felt like a playoff atmosphere," Oladipo told reporters of Friday's win over Milwaukee. "It was a great win for us. We just have to continue getting better."

ABOUT THE WIZARDS (36-27): Washington committed 18 turnovers in the loss to the Warriors and added another 18 in Friday's setback to the Raptors. "When we play against those good teams," forward Markieff Morris told the Washington Post, "our mistakes must be limited. We can't have (18 turnovers) or 20-something turnovers or not switch on screens and give up wide-open threes or not get back in transition. When you play against the best teams in the league, you've got to bring it." Satoransky is doing some of the ballhandling in the absence of All-Star point guard John Wall (knee) and handed out eight assists on Friday but also committed six turnovers.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Pacers SG Bojan Bogdanovic attempted a season-high 13 free throws on Friday, hitting 12.

2. Wall (knee) is expected to advance his rehab to light work on-court this weekend.

3. Washington took the last four in the series, including a 111-102 win at Indiana on Feb. 5.

PREDICTION: Pacers 116, Wizards 110