A forgettable way to end the first half of the season. Per usual at this point, Indiana came out sluggish and trailed big (at least by 9 anyway) early and it seemed all but certain they would follow the same script they have been of late to turn things around and win. Not because of anything the Pacers were doing well mind you. Because they were playing against a team that barely belongs in the NBA.
The bench carried the day. We have heard since preseason how this team’s depth would be a weapon. But ever since George Hill got hurt and Tyler Hansbrough had his soul destroyed, presumably, they bench was generally a big letdown. They weren’t tonight. And mostly, Tyler wasn’t, dropping a season-high in scoring (22 points) while putting his stamp all over the game. Dahntay Jones and AJ Price chipped in with some effective shooting of their own, the whole team (Paul George aside, which is becoming troubling) got to the line, they protected the ball (only 6 turnovers) and the result was the second laugher over Charlotte in the past four days.
Here is how each guy played individually tonight. Agree? Disagree? Express your thoughts below in the comments or yell at me (@8pts9secs) or Tim (@TimDonahue8p9s) on Twitter.
| David West – 24 MIN | 2-8 FG | 2-2 FT | 6 REB | 1 AST | 6 PTS Yuck. | ||
| Danny Granger – 27 MIN | 2-11 FG | 7-8 FT | 5 REB | 1 AST | 12 PTS Yuck. (Got to the line though.) | ||
| Roy Hibbert – 22 MIN | 4-5 FG | 1-2 FT | 8 REB | 2 AST | 9 PTS Not bad but Bismack Biyombo was the most physical big in this game. You would like to see more, especially after his career-high scoring game last night, against such a weak front line. | ||
| Darren Collison – 25 MIN | 2-7 FG | 5-6 FT | 5 REB | 4 AST | 10 PTS Not so so bad. But not so so good. And certainly not so so def. | ||
| Paul George – 18 MIN | 4-7 FG | 0-0 FT | 2 REB | 0 AST | 10 PTS Didn’t play much because Vogel likely wanted to get George Hill some “comeback” minutes before the break while retaining some time for Lance. Then he never went back to the starters. Still, his 3rd straight game with 0 FTAs. |
| Dahntay Jones – 21 MIN | 3-4 FG | 2-2 FT | 2 REB | 1 AST | 10 PTS Looked excellent, composed and in control. Enjoy his game a lot on nights like these. | ||
| Louis Amundson – 23 MIN | 3-10 FG | 2-4 FT | 12 REB | 8 PTS Missed 7 shots. Grabbed 6 ORBs. These stats may be related. Couple blocks, too, to go along with his inefficient 8 points in a game spent flailing around and trying to dunk on people. Typical. | ||
| A.J. Price – 23 MIN | 4-7 FG | 2-2 FT | 4 REB | 6 AST | 11 PTS This 11-point night makes this back-to-back games during which AJ has dropped double-digits. 6 dimes in 23 minutes will work just fine, too. | ||
| George Hill – 20 MIN | 2-7 FG | 0-0 FT | 4 REB | 3 AST | 4 PTS Nothing much of note but he played for the first time since January — and looked healthy doing so. All that matters. Not a good shooting night but productive otherwise. | ||
| Tyler Hansbrough – 24 MIN | 8-18 FG | 6-6 FT | 9 REB | 22 PTS Splendid outing for a season-high in points and a near-double-double in just 24 minutes. The team, in this game and just in this season, needs more from the bench. Tyler delivered. | ||
| Jeff Pendergraph – 4 MIN | 0-0 FG | 0 REB | 0 AST | 0 PTS Hilariously kicked the ball around the paint like four times on one play in garbage time. So there’s that. | ||
| Lance Stephenson – 10 MIN | 0-1 FG | 0-0 FT | 0 REB | 2 AST | 0 PTS A little disappointing. |