Indiana Pacers Dominate San Antonio Spurs
Indiana Pacers (18-2) 111
San Antonio Spurs (15-4) 100
Dec 7, 2013; San Antonio, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Cory Joseph (5) drives to the basket as Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert (55) defends during the second half at AT
Indiana Pacer fans can breath now as that game just got very interesting towards the end with the furious rally by the San Antonio Spurs bench. That fourth quarter couldn’t have ended soon enough as the once 26 point lead got chopped all the way down to around 10 points. If that game had a few more minutes, who knows what might have happened?
Luckily, the game ended and the Pacers walk away with the great win. They ended the 11 game losing streak to the San Antonio Spurs overall. They brought a stop to the Spurs 11 game winning streak in San Antonio against Indiana. They are now 3-1 on this trip, which is right where I thought the Pacers would be.
This game didn’t pan out the way I thought it would once the Pacers took control in that second and third quarter. Those might have been the best two quarters of the season for the Pacers as they just played their own way of basketball, and they weren’t looking back. That third quarter might have been the best quarter I’ve seen as it was like all the pieces were moving in the best direction for the Pacers.
The Pacers scored 67 points between the second and third quarters combined. Just think the Pacers defense only gives up around 88 points a game. That’s how good things were rolling for the team in those quarters.
Paul George once again plays a strong game with his 28 points, which included 4-4 from three point range. David West looked like David West with his 20 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and even 3 steals. I thought he just really wanted to will the Pacers to a win in this game. When West gets in that mode, good things happen for the Pacers.
The rest of the starters filled out scores in double figures. George Hill really looked alive in his old stomping grounds of San Antonio. That George Hill last night is the guy that the Pacers can use most of the way for games. He was aggressive and getting to the basket. But at the same time, he was looking for guys near the basket once he got there.
Roy Hibbert took on Tim Duncan at times, and even hit a fall away shot as the shot clock expired that was one of those “no no no, yes!” shots. Lance Stephenson was looking like Good Lance with his barrage of shots and getting to the basket. Things just all seemed to click once the Pacers got that lead and really worked to build up the lead.
Now, the focus shifts to Oklahoma City. If the Pacers can built this type of effort again, look out Thunder. This is a team with a focus to them that I haven’t seen in a team in years. You just know how badly this team wants to be that best team. Can we fast forward to the playoffs already?