Wizards guard John Wall goes up to make a layup. The Wizards are ___ to the Raptors ____ in the first round of the 2018 NBA playoffs.

The Washington Wizards are facing the Toronto Raptors in the first round of the NBA playoffs this year. The Wizards are the eighth seed and Toronto is the first seed, so many people predicted that Toronto would sweep the Wizards in this series. However, the series is currently tied at 2-2.

In game 1, the Raptors defeated the Wizards 114-106 on April 14. The Raptors made a playoff franchise record with 16 three pointers during the game, shooting 53.3% from deep. Despite Toronto’s consistent offensive spark through the game, the Wizards were able to hold on and keep the game close until the end of the fourth quarter.

The fourth quarter of game 1 previewed the outcome of game 2, as the Raptors completely dominated the Wizards from the start in game two. However, as the Wizards returned to the Capital One Arena for game 3, they completely flipped the script as they went on to defeat the Raptors 122-103. Riding off the momentum from game 3, the Wizards also went on to win game 4, 106-98.

There were many factors that changed during games 3 and 4 that allowed the wizards to redeem themselves against the Raptors. In the first two games, the Raptors had home-court advantage, and in games 3 and 4, the Wizards played at their home arena. Not surprisingly, both teams were more comfortable playing at home in front of their own fans.

Junior Alex Gross acknowledges that home-court advantage plays a huge factor in the playoffs, which influenced his predictions on the outcome of each game.

“I’m not surprised at all that the Raptors won their first two home games and now the Wizards just won their first two home games and now it’s all tied up at 2-2,” Gross said. “That’s kind of what I expected.”

For both teams, performances from all-star players were a large factor in each game, but especially for the Wizards. Guard John Wall has played well throughout the series, scoring 20+ points in each game, while also racking up several assists.

Despite his incredible scoring and playmaking abilities, the Wizards still could not emerge victorious in the first two games. This is partially because Washington’s other all-star, guard Bradley Beal, did not play like an all-star caliber player in games 1 and 2.

In game 1, he scored 19 points, which was a good contribution, but he did not dominate on the offensive end like he should. Additionally, in game 2 he only had 9 points, which was not enough to compete with Raptors all-star guards Demar Derozan and Kyle Lowry, and the Raptors bench. In fact, Derozan scored 37 points in game two.

When Beal immediately started hitting shots and being more aggressive offensively in game 3, the Wizards were able to build a lead. He and Wall combined for 56 points, and it was the same story in game 4, when they combined for 58 points. When both Beal and Wall played well simultaneously and capitalized on their incredible on-court chemistry, there was a clear difference in the pace and outcome of the game.

However, the Wizards’ all-star guards were not the only players that made a difference in this series as Derozan and Lowry consistently played well in each game. Like Wall, Derozan scored 20+ points in each game, but his best performance was in game 2, when he scored 37 points to lead his team to a victory.

Also, the Raptors’ bench players really made the difference between a win and a loss for Toronto. Guard Delon Wright and forward C.J. Miles, among others, scored 18 and 12 points respectively in game 1, and continued to score in double figures in game 2. However, it was clear that when they did not come close to scoring that many points in games 3 and 4, that the Raptors offense was fizzled out by the Wizards’ defense.

Even though the Wizards locked down their defense in game 4, and had multiple incredible player performances, they were still losing to the Raptors 54-40 going into the third quarter. Despite Beal having four fouls towards the end of the game, head coach Scott Brooks opted to keep Beal in the game, which turned out to a be a great decision as he helped Washington tie the game at 92-92, before he fouled out.

Beal ended up scoring 31 points in game 4 before he was forced to leave the game. As expected, Wall took over and give it his all as the clock ticked down at the end of the game.

“When [Beal] went out, I knew I had to do whatever it took, guarding DeRozan, making plays, scoring the ball or passing the ball,” Wall said. “I just wanted to do whatever it took to advance to Game 5 tied 2-2.”

Game 5 was on April 25, but due to deadlines, this article was last updated on April 24.