Post-Game Grades: Pacers Rediscover Defense and End 3-Game Losing Streak
By Ryan Barth
110. 96. 100. Final. 83
Coach Frank Vogel had to be enduring some sleepless nights lately with the Indiana pacers playing some of the worst defense in the league the last three games.
It all came to a head when the Golden State Warriors put up 79 in the 1st Half on Tuesday night. Hopefully, those days are over and we can all get back to normal now. Tonight, the Miami Heat didn’t score 79 points until midway through the 4th quarter and did next to nothing the rest of the way. The Pacers forced 19 turnovers including 12 steals (4th in the league overall) and suffocated Miami all game long. On a night when the offense wasn’t clicking (shooting just 33% in the first half), the D had to be there and it was consistent throughout.
The Good: The Pacers did a great job of closing out on the perimeter and playing aggressive trapping defense without fouling. Chris Bosh (23 points) and Dwayne Wade (20 points) got theirs, but that was about it for the Heat. No passing lane was safe and they made the Heat work for every basket.
The Bad: 21% (6-28) from 3-point land (started the game 0-10) was hard on the eyes and rims. Shooting three air balls in the first half made Quinn Buckner wonder if a wind tunnel was the culprit. It’s hard to say if the strategy of allowing Gerald Green to shoot open three’s was a good or bad idea, but oddly enough he was able to knock most of them down. Let’s all just agree the Gerald Green era in Indiana was bad and leave it at that.
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MVP: Monta Ellis went and got his tonight which was LONG overdue. You could feel it coming after he failed to show up against the Warriors of all teams. He hadn’t scored double digits in the last 3 games and he’s just too good of a scorer for that nonsense. His 6 steals lead the team as well which propelled the fast break and kept the game close when the shots just weren’t falling for his teammates. Good to see someone else take the scoring load off Paul George. This is just the 3rd time this season someone besides PG has led the team in scoring.
LVP: CJ Miles just wasn’t feeling it tonight, hitting only 1-10 from long range. He didn’t necessarily take a lot of bad shots, but perhaps he was a little off his game and out of rhythm coming off the bench as opposed to starting.
X-Factor: Ian Mahinmi shot 100% (4-4) from the free throw line, put up his 2nd double-double of the season (18 points, 12 rebounds) and made us all think about whether the Pacers would have made the playoffs last season, if he had started at center and Roy, came off the bench. We’ll never know…
B. <p>Still grading on an MVP curve here and Paul looked a little silly in the Pick n’ Roll game with 3 ugly turnovers while looking especially out of sync with Lavoy Allen at the 4. A lot of his passes were of the “extremely high above the head” variety. He never got overly frustrated, though and made the most of his trips to the free throw line (8-8). Here’s hoping his PIE (Player Impact Estimate) remains sky high.</p>. Small Forward. Indiana Pacers. PAUL GEORGE
<p>We already knew Monta could score (24 points), but it was the 6 assists and 6 steals that excites you. Paul George got on him for passing up an open 3-pointer in the 1st half, so he made sure to let it fly for the rest of the game. He might be a 31% career 3-point shooter, but he always seems to take them in the flow of the offense and was especially effective tonight from deep (4-7).</p><p><span style=. Shooting Guard. Indiana Pacers. MONTA ELLIS. A
B. <p>Made his impact on the game in other ways besides scoring (5 rebounds, 4 assists), but he looked sluggish for some reason. It could have been as a result of landing awkwardly on his ankle in the 1st half. His defense on Goran Dragic (a well-chronicled Pacers killer) was crucial, holding him to just 5 points.</p>. Point Guard. Indiana Pacers. GEORGE HILL
C. <p>This was a clear-cut example of why it’s useless to place so much emphasis on who starts the game. Lavoy got the start at Power Forward in place of CJ Miles putting out a bigger lineup to cover Chris Bosh, but he finished the game playing only 12 total minutes which was not a result of foul trouble.</p>. Power Forward. Indiana Pacers. LAVOY ALLEN
A. <p>He was the entire offense for a majority of the first half. He got down the court quicker than the wings on a few fast breaks, which is crazy. The confidence is growing and paying off big time.</p>. Center. Indiana Pacers. IAN MAHINMI
D. <p>He did his best to force the action but never seemed to get any calls. Shot only 2-9 from the field and some of those misses were of the God-awful variety.</p>. Point Guard. Indiana Pacers. RODNEY STUCKEY
B-. <p>Played way too far off Bosh for a stretch in the 2nd quarter and got burned repeatedly. Great block off the dome of Goran Dragic though.</p>. Center. Indiana Pacers. JORDAN HILL
C.J. MILES. C-. <p>Couldn’t hit anything, but made himself useful by grabbing 8 rebounds and blocking a couple shots in transition.</p>. Shooting Guard. Indiana Pacers
C. <p>Sloppy with the ball and contributed to the 3-point brick show.</p>. Small Forward. Indiana Pacers. CHASE BUDINGER