Insider: Pacers finishing strong to stay in playoff race

The regular season is winding down and yet the postseason is a hazy picture. While six Eastern Conference teams have already secured their permits to the playoffs, the basement, where the final two teams will sneak in, remains a dark and undefined space.

Only two more games, yet a world of ambiguity – because the Indiana Pacers keep making it so.

On Sunday, the Pacers once again refused to bow out of the playoff chase by earning their fifth consecutive win, a 116-104 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Indiana (37-43) has now matched the win-loss record of the 8th-seeded Brooklyn Nets, who lost earlier in the day to the Milwaukee Bucks. But the good news ends there: the Pacers still rank ninth overall and the Nets own the tiebreaker. So by Wednesday when the season ends and if the teams still share the same record, Brooklyn will get the playoff berth while Indiana will get an early vacation.

"We know every game matters for us and we've got to continue to play at this level to get in," said George Hill, who scored nine through the fourth quarter and finished with 19 points and seven assists. "It just sucks that we don't control our own destiny as far as needing help from others. We just got to hope for the best."

As the Pacers began pulling away in the fourth quarter, the Bankers Life Fieldhouse scoreboard operator flashed the final of the Nets-Bucks game to the sold-out arena. Players peeped the score, too. They have no power over their playoff destiny – a few bad losses in April denied them that right – but the Pacers are accomplishing everything on their checklist.

Defeating everyone that dares step into their way. Check.

"The only thing we can control are the games on our schedule," David West said, "and in our locker room we're going to keep doing that."

PLAYOFF STANDINGS

Here is a look at the race for the final two playoff spots in the Eastern Conference:

Team W L GB 7. Boston 38 42 - 8. Brooklyn 37 43 1 9. Pacers* 37 43 1 10. Miami 35 45 3

*Brooklyn owns head-to-head tiebreaker.

The Pacers beat back the powerful force known as Russell Westbrook and outfought a team that is just as hungry for the playoffs. Though Westbrook showed the array of his expansive talent – and at times, his emotional tumult – his career-high 54points (21-of-43 shooting) were not enough for the Thunder (43-37), who like the Pacers rank ninth in their conference.

"We made some good runs at them and were able to cut it down," Westbrook said, "but we were never able to get over the hump."

After Westbrook scored seven straight to tie the score at 88 with 7:54 remaining, he also aided in the Pacers' 12-0 run by picking up a technical foul that led to a four-point possession. If the technical stands, his 16th of the season, Westbrook will become the first player this season to reach the limit and serve a one-game suspension.

In a much more calm fashion, the Pacers balanced the offensive attack with four starters in double figures, including C.J. Miles who scored 30 points (9-of-14 from the floor) and pulled down 10 rebounds. Also, Roy Hibbert collected his third straight double-double (17 points, 10 rebounds) and stuffed Westbrook twice at the rim.

"Every play is a big play," Miles said. "Everybody is stepping up and making big plays on both sides. When everything is big, you have to lock in and just find ways to win games."

If only the Pacers had this same resolve nearly two weeks ago.

During the early days of spring, the Pacers played a critical back-to-back against Brooklyn and the Boston Celtics, the current holders of the final two playoff positions, and dropped both road games. The losses ensured that even if the Pacers wanted a shot at the postseason, then they would have to finish with better records than both opponents.

Indiana has no time to regret those losses, or any other games that slipped through their fingers (Jan. 4 at Los Angeles Lakers, Jan. 10 at Philadelphia 76ers, Jan. 13 against the Milwaukee Bucks). But the ghosts of bad losses may come back to haunt them after all.

"That's not fun knowing that no matter how good we're playing," Miles said, "we're still depending on someone else."

"We had two bad losses in a row in the head-to-head match and these were tough losses," Ian Mahinmi said about the March 31 and April 1 back-to-back in Brooklyn and Boston. "But after that, we looked at each other and said: 'What are we going to do? Are we just going to quit or are we just going to stay in the fight?' There ain't no quitters over here, so you know, after that we just keep fighting. Everything is not in our control but we try to control what we can and that's to stay in the fight and try to win every game."

Mahinmi has already made his Monday night plans: he'll be watching the Chicago Bulls-Nets matchup. A Brooklyn loss will propel the Pacers to the 8th seed. However, Indiana still has two more games remaining – the Washington Wizards on Tuesday and the season finale in Memphis. If Brooklyn loses Monday and the Pacers win out, then there will no longer be a foggy playoff picture. It will clearly favor Indiana.

"The biggest thing is give ourselves a chance," Miles said. "If we don't give ourselves a chance, it would definitely not be fun. I'm just enjoying the moment with these guys, playing hard and trying to give ourselves a chance."

all Star reporter Candace Buckner at (317) 444-6121. Follow her on Twitter: @CandaceDBuckner.