Wizards vs. Pacers preview: Washington aims for revenge after close loss in Indiana

Game Info

When: Wednesday, December 28 at 7:00 pm ET
Where: Verizon Center in Washington D.C.
TV: CSN Mid-Atlantic
Radio: 1500 AM and Wizards Radio App

Injury Report

Wizards: Ian Mahinmi (Out, Knee), Danuel House (Out, Wrist)
Pacers: Monta Ellis (Out, Groin), Rodney Stuckey (Questionable, Hamstring), Joe Young (Questionable, Illness)

What to Watch for

Can the Wizards learn from their mistakes last week?

This is the second time this week the Wizards will face a team they lost to the week before. They redeemed themselves on Monday after losing last week to the Bucks. Now, they’ll try to do the same against the Pacers, who they lost a tight game to last week in Indiana.

In the loss last week, John Wall, Bradley Beal and Otto Porter all struggled shooting the ball, combining to go 18-46 from the field. While their shots weren’t falling most of the night, they all did a good job of getting to the free throw line, earning a combined 19 free throw attempts. If they can just keep doing what they did the last time around and hit a few more shots, they should put themselves in a good position to win the rematch, but it would help if they could also find a way to slow down Jeff Teague a bit, who went for 23 points and 10 assists.

How will the Wizards respond after an exhausting win?

Washington picked up a much needed win against the Bucks on Monday, but it required a lot from their starters. All five starters played at least 36 minutes, with John Wall, Otto Porter, and Marcin Gortat all going over 40 minutes.

Scott Brooks offered up an interesting explanation for why he relied so heavily on his starters after the game on Monday:

Well, we know we had some time off, so all the bodies are rested and feeling pretty good. I don't normally like to play John [Wall] and Otto [Porter Jr.] 40-plus minutes, but this game I thought dictated that. We got down in that fourth quarter, got down I think nine or ten, and I thought they came back in, gave us great defensive intensity, and showed that commitment to win every possession. This week we have a game, a day off, a game, a day off, so those all factor in when I think about minutes and rotations, but I really like to keep them in the mid 30's.

That all makes sense, but it could make for an interesting decision if the Wizards find themselves in a similar position on Wednesday against the Pacers

Most Likely Wizards Killer: C.J. Miles

Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports

Miles has a history of popping off against the Wizards. In 2008, he scored 29 points in 30 minutes in a game the Jazz won by 42. He scored 25 in a double-overtime slugfest against the Wizards near the end of the 2014-15 season. And then last season, he scored 32 points in 33 minutes, thanks in large part to making 8 of his 9 three point attempts.

What’s worse is he’s coming off a rough night in Chicago in Monday where he missed all 6 of his shot attempts. We’ll see if playing against the Wizards gives him a jump start.