WASHINGTON – Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal did what they do — a near triple-double for one, 25 points in just 29 minutes for the other — and the Washington Wizards reached the NBA playoffs as the Eastern Conference’s No.
8 seed by overwhelming the Indiana Pacers 142-115 in the play-in round Thursday night. Washington led by as many as 38 points and advanced to face Joel Embiid and the No.
1 seed Philadelphia 76ers in the first round, marking quite a turnaround for coach Scott Brooks' crew, which was 17-32 in early April.
Indiana's run of five consecutive playoff appearances ended in coach Nate Bjorkgren's debut season. A little more than a week after breaking Oscar Robertson’s career record for most regular-season triple-doubles,