It may have seemed gradual, but the Indiana Pacers lost Game 1 of their semifinal series against the Washington Wizards, 102-96, just a few moments after the opening tip. The Pacers didn't score until nearly four minutes into the game as the Wizards jumped out to an 8-0 lead.

Washington looked well rested after eliminating the Chicago Bulls in five games and having just as many days off, while Indiana was a step slow in the early going. The Pacers missed 11 of their first 13 shots, putting them in a hole they would only briefly climb out of with an impressive run in the second period.

With C.J. Watson, Lance Stephenson, Evan Turner, David West and Luis Scola on the floor, Indiana opened the second on an 11-0 run that extended to 16-2 when Turner made a pair of free throws to give the Pacers a 31-30 lead, their only advantage of the game.

The Wizards took the punch and countered with a 6-0 run that settled them down for the remainder of the game. After watching a 13-point advantage disappear in a matter of moments, Washington rebuilt the entire lead heading into halftime.

After falling behind by as many as 16 in the third, the Pacers made a strong run to end the third to pull within seven. It turned out to be too little, too late. Bradley Beal and Co. made several timely shots, forever keeping the Pacers at arm's length.

The defense was pretty good, despite the Wizards shooting 10-for-16 from three. They held Washington to 41.7% overall and Beal and Trevor Ariza were simply on fire. They combined to go 9-for-11 from deep. After watching the Atlanta Hawks shoot threes like their season depended on it in the first round, the Pacers watched the Wizards actually make a majority of them.

The problem for Indiana down the stretch was offense. They went more than seven minutes between field goals after Paul George made a layup at the 7:41 mark of the fourth. Chris Copeland ended the drought on a forced three-pointer in Garrett Temple's face with 40.6 seconds left.

Over that seven-minute stretch, Indiana missed six shots and committed three turnovers. The only reason they had any semblance of a prayer in the final moments was that Washington was in the penalty early. They scored nine points at the line over the stretch.

An offensive flurry late was merely "window dressing" as Ian Eagle expertly described it on the TNT telecast. George Hill made a trio of threes to make the final score look closer than it truly was at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

Glass Beating

The Pacers could never grab control of the game because, quite frankly, they couldn't grab a rebound. Washington thumped them on the glass, 53-36. They continually earned extra possessions with offensive rebounds (17), helping boosting a 41.7% shooting percentage. Those extra chances also helped counteract the Wizards' 17 turnovers.

Marcin Gortat was dominant in the paint, collecting 15 rebounds (six offensive). Drew Gooden, who the Pacers made look like an All-Star in less than 18 minutes of action, tallied 12 points and 13 rebounds.

Roy Hibbert, meanwhile, remains a shell of his All-Star self. In close to 18 minutes, he failed to record a point or rebound and was whistled for five fouls. He was a -17 as once again Frank Vogel's best unit featured David West and Luis Scola in the frontcourt.

The rebounding margin shouldn't be that vast, but Indiana isn't going to hang with Washington on the boards with both Hibbert and Ian Mahinmi on the bench. Offensively, though, Vogel has had to go small to ensure any sort of offensive organization.

Trevor Ariza

Depending on your viewpoint, it's hard to believe that Trevor Ariza is 28 years old. It seems like just yesterday he was a promising rookie with the New York Knicks at 19. He's a veteran of 10 NBA seasons, but won't turn 30 until next summer.

Ariza has the length and athleticism to guard Paul George effectively, but what the Pacers didn't expect was for him to explode offensively. Ariza averaged 14.4 points and did shoot a career-high 40.7% from three during the regular season, but his efficiently in Game 1 was troubling.

He scored 22 points on just 10 shots. Ariza made a few contested one, but the Pacers had plenty of practice closing out on shooters in the first round. No member of the Wizards should see daylight from behind the three-point line. Washington's 16 three-point attempts on Monday night represent what a half looked like for Atlanta.

Paul George

George was spectacular in Game 7 on Saturday night and great throughout the Atlanta series, but laid a relative stinker in the semifinal opener. He shot 4-for-17 from the field, posting 18 points, six rebounds and five assists.

His jumper wasn't falling, so he went to the basket in the fourth quarter and found success. He went 5-for-5 from the line in the final period, helping keep the Washington defense backpedaling when he was on the attack. That should be the game plan early in Game 2, as getting Gortat and Nene in foul trouble would be an added benefit.