8 points, 9 seconds
Fansided

Indiana Pacers Ground Houston Rockets In 4th Quarter

By Ben Gibson

Mar 27, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Houston Rockets guard Corey Brewer (33) shoots the ball and is fouled by Indiana Pacers guard George Hill (3) in the second half of the game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Indiana Pacers beat the Houston Rockets by the score of 104-101. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 27, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Houston Rockets guard Corey Brewer (33) shoots the ball and is fouled by Indiana Pacers guard George Hill (3) in the second half of the game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Indiana Pacers beat the Houston Rockets by the score of 104-101. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Indiana Pacers have struggled in 4th quarters this season, but at least on Sunday they held on to beat the Houston Rockets.

James Harden went off for 34 points but that wasn’t enough for the Houston Rockets as the Indiana Pacers got their act together late to hold on for a 104-101 victory.

Indiana surrendered its 10 point lead in the 3rd quarter as Harden scored 15 points, nearly half of his total on the night. The two teams exchanged the lead several times in the 4th quarter, but it was Ian Mahinmi that led the way for the Pacers with 10 points in the game’s final period. In fact, it was Mahinmi and Monta Ellis that scored Indiana’s final 12 points in the game and helped pushed the rest of the team across the finish line for the win.

Ellis and Mahinmi were two of only three Pacers on Sunday to score double-digits as they had 23 and 19, respectively, while Paul George led Indiana with 25. Ellis led the Pacers with 7 assists while Ian and PG shared the rebounding lead with 11 each to earn their double-doubles. Ty Lawson had 5 assists and 6 points in his 14 minutes of play.

After struggling for only 3 points and 3 rebounds against the New Orleans Pelicans, Mahinmi has bounced back to average 18.5 points and 8 rebounds in the Pacers’ past two games. We’ve said it several times this season, but to see Mahinmi go from a very average backup center to the 9th best center in the NBA in terms of VORP in astonishing.

Ian Mahinmi Career Points, Rebounds and Assists per Game | PointAfter

He went from someone you weren’t sure if they could catch the ball cleanly to averaging a solid 8.9 points and 7 rebounds a game.

More from 8 Points, 9 Seconds

One of the things I appreciate most about Mahinmi is he knows exactly what the Pacers need from him. One of the reason’s he shoots 57.9% from the field is he know he’s not needed, and can’t be, the Pacers’ go-to guy for scoring even when he’s having a good night. He’s only attempted 10 or more shots 7 times this season, topping out at 18 attempts in his 19-point game against Oklahoma City earlier this year. It isn’t an exact comparison, but he’s a French Jeff Foster; he does plenty of dirty work and knows his role.

He’s by no means an all-star or anything, but he’s been what Indiana needed at the center position this season and aided in Myles Turner’s transition to the NBA. If Mahinmi isn’t there to help guard the paint and grab rebounds, Turner’s youthful mistakes would be much more of a liability for the Pacers.

Data curated by PointAfter

The win wasn’t pretty, nor was it anything to get excited about, but it was desperately needed if Indiana wants to make the playoffs this season.

Next: Myles Turner Gives Up His Hotel Alias on Snapchat

Indiana has Monday off before hosting the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Home/Pacers News