Indiana Pacers News & Notes

[TheGeneral+]

Jermaine O'Neal poured in a season-high 34 points to lead the Indiana Pacers over the Golden State Warriors, 107-96, on Tuesday at Conseco Fieldhouse. O'Neal has tallied 30 or more points four times this season.

Jamaal Tinsley added 13 points and 11 assists for the Pacers, who won their third straight game, all since the injured Ron Artest has been out of action. Indiana, which has won six of its last seven at home, is an impressive 23-6 as the host this season.

In the victory over the Warriors, Indiana took care of the ball. The Pacers only committed nine turnovers and also won the battle on the glass, 44-38.

The Pacers have allowed at least 100 points only four times this season. Indiana scored 100 or more for the 11th time this season.

O'Neal is averaging 27.5 points, seven rebounds, four assists and 5.5 blocks in his last two games.

Tinsley has scored in double digits in three straight and seven of his last nine games. He is averaging 15 points and 8.3 assists in his last three contests.

Indiana, which is 5-0 without the All-Star Artest this season, is off until Friday when it visits Central Division rival New Orleans. The Pacers are 2-1 against the Hornets this season. In the three meetings, Indiana picked up wins on the road and at home, while losing 89-75 on February 17th at Conseco Fieldhouse.

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[TheGeneral+]

The Indiana Pacers have only two losses since the All-Star break, and both have come against the New Orleans Hornets.

Jamal Mashburn scored 22 points and Baron Davis 18, and the Hornets snapped Indiana's four-game winning streak with an 89-77 victory Friday night.

"Hopefully, we'll leave something in their minds if we meet again" in the playoffs, said Hornets forward P.J. Brown, who had 17 points and helped hold Jermaine O'Neal to 5-of-14 shooting.

The Hornets lost their first two meetings against the Pacers, but on Feb. 17 they dominated in Indianapolis for an 89-75 victory.

O'Neal said the Pacers won't let their past two losses to New Orleans affect them.

"We know what we got to do if we see these guys in the playoffs," O'Neal said. "We can't try to outscore them. We've got to hammer them. We've got to knock them down.

"We've got to do what got us our two wins. They reversed the strategy on us and that's how they got their two wins. I'm pretty sure the next time we see these guys it's not going to happen again."

Another difference in each team's victories were injuries. Mashburn missed the Hornets' two losses, while Ron Artest missed Friday's game.

Indiana coach Rick Carlisle was concerned about the Hornets' rebounding advantage in the last two meetings.

"They outrebounded us by 18 in Indianapolis and tonight by 16 (52-36). ... That's a problem," Carlisle said. "They're an unusual team. They have a lot of size and a lot of strength on the inside."

Indiana never led in the second half. Austin Croshere's 3-pointer pulled Indiana to 78-70 with a little over four minutes to go.

Then Davis took control.

He responded with a 3 of his own, drew a charge on Al Harrington's drive, then slipped a pass underneath to Brown for a dunk, putting the Hornets up 83-72 with three minutes left. Mashburn's turnaround fade with 2:16 to go finished off the Pacers.

"When Croshere hit a big 3, I had a pretty good feeling and a touch from outside, and just seeing how their defense was playing I knew I was going to take that (3-point) shot," Davis said.

Jamaal Magloire, contained for much of the first half, finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Hornets.

O'Neal led Indiana with 15 points, while Jamaal Tinsley added 14 and Fred Jones 10. But Indiana struggled to get inside and couldn't make shots, finishing at 36 percent from the floor.

The Hornets started to pull away midway through the third period, going on a 16-4 run that included a 3 by Davis in transition, a 3 by Darrell Armstrong after two Hornets' offensive rebounds, and a tip-in by Magloire for a 70-53 lead late in the period.

Tough defense defined the opening half as both offenses had trouble getting inside. New Orleans didn't get its shooting percentage over 40 until the end of the half, while Indiana shot only 35 percent.

In the final seconds of the half, Mashburn found Davis cutting through the lane for a one-handed dunk over O'Neal that had Davis so excited he ripped off his headband.

Croshere threw in a shot from beyond halfcourt at the buzzer, and the shot initially was called good. But after a video review, the call was overturned and the Hornets maintained a 46-34 lead.

Notes:

Mashburn has scored 20 or more points in each of his last six games. ... The loss was Indiana's first in New Orleans since the Hornets relocated here from Charlotte for the 2002-2003 season

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[TheGeneral+]

The Indiana Pacers' inside game was too strong for Philadelphia on Saturday night.

The 76ers' offense was too ragged.

Jermaine O'Neal scored 23 points and Al Harrington added 21 as the Pacers leaned on their middle men to pull away from the banged-up 76ers 81-74.

"Al brought great energy," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "He was patient on offense and we needed someone to step up offensively instead of Jermaine."

For the Pacers, it was yet another example of how they have built the Eastern Conference's best record at 43-16.

On a night Indiana missed its first nine 3-pointers, shot 42 percent, was outrebounded 41-38 and played without forward Jonathan Bender, the Pacers still found a way to win. Bender was attending a funeral in Mississippi and is expected to rejoin the Sunday.

Still, Indiana won for the fourth time in five games and won its third straight over the 76ers this season. The Pacers can sweep the season series by winning at Philadelphia on April 12.

"We all must work together to help them from packing down on Jermaine and to take up the slack for Ron (Artest)," Harrington said of the Pacers' injured All-Star.

Philadelphia had even bigger problems than contending with the Pacers' inside tandem.

Without injured All-Star guard Allen Iverson and forward Glenn Robinson -- who account for nearly 36 percent of the 76ers' points -- the offense struggled.

Iverson, the NBA's second-leading scorer, missed his third straight game with a bruised right shoulder, and Robinson was out with a strained right elbow. Neither player even made the trip.

But the 76ers had survived before without Iverson and Robinson, winning both times they played without their top two scorers.

On Saturday, it was a different story.

Philadelphia committed 21 turnovers, four fewer than its season high, and made just three of 17 shots in the third quarter when the Pacers took control. The 76ers' 11-point third quarter was also their second-lowest total in a quarter this season. They scored 10 points in the fourth quarter of an 85-74 loss to the Pacers on Nov. 9.

Kenny Thomas led the Sixers with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Samuel Dalembert added 15 points and 13 rebounds. Willie Green had 16 points off the bench but the offense never seemed to get in sync and it wasn't quite enough to prevent the 76ers from losing their fourth straight and 16th in 21 games.

"It's tough on the offensive end," Dalembert said. "We have to find a way to score points."

Indiana wasn't much better offensively, but was able to exploit the 76ers' interior with O'Neal and Harrington accounting for more than half the team's points.

The Pacers got a typical game from O'Neal, who hit 10 of 20 shots and grabbed eight rebounds. The difference was Harrington, who was 10-of-20 from the field and had nine rebounds -- six on the offensive end.

"He's big enough, strong enough and athletic enough," Philadelphia coach Chris Ford said. "He pounds guys to get second-chance opportunities."

Although the Pacers led most of the way, they were only ahead 47-41 midway through the third quarter.

Harrington helped turn the game by igniting a 7-0 run late in the third quarter and an 8-2 run that ended with Anthony Johnson's 18-footer to open the fourth quarter, making it 63-47.

The Pacers led 79-64 with 3:45 to go before allowing Philadelphia a 6-0 run to get back into the game.

But the Sixers couldn't get any closer than that until Thomas hit two free throws with 15.4 seconds left.

"That's the type of game we're looking for him to play," O'Neal said of Harrington.

^Notes The Pacers three-game winning streak against Philadelphia is their longest streak since winning 10 straight from February 1996 to February 1999. ... O'Neal played with a sore right knee, the same knee that bothered him in December. Carlisle said he has tendinitis in the knee, an injury flared up in the past week. ... Philadelphia shot 42.6 percent from the field, the first time in three games it was better than 40 percent. ... Green set career-high by making seven baskets and dishing out six assists.

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[TheGeneral+]

The Indiana Pacers' 19-10 road record this season is an accurate reflection of a team that doesn't fear toiling away from Conseco Fieldhouse.

In fact, the Pacers relish the opportunity to test themselves away from home, particularly when it's an extended trip like the four-game Western Conference odyssey they begin tonight in Oakland, Calif., against the Golden State Warriors.

The Los Angeles Clippers, Utah Jazz and Denver Nuggets also will host the Pacers as the week unfolds.

"There are so many times when we're faced with some tough obstacles on the road, and for the most part we've been able to overcome those obstacles," Pacers guard Reggie Miller said. "This (trip) is just another one."

Al Harrington said the road can be a good place for a team that is trying to prepare for a late-season push and playoff run. The fact that Denver is the only opponent on the trip with a winning record is insignificant.

"The West is always tough," Harrington said. "I like the road. Most of my best games come on the road anyway. When you're out there, everything is against you, you have that nothing-to-lose attitude all the time. And most of the time, we're ruining people's day and I like that."

So what constitutes a successful trip for the Pacers?

"A successful trip is 4-for-4," Harrington said. "I guess 3-for-4 would be nice, too. But I'd like the sweep."

Coming back early?

Pacers All-Star forward Ron Artest missed Monday's practice to have his surgically repaired left thumb examined, but he will join the team in California today.

Fellow All-Star forward Jermaine O'Neal said Artest could return to the lineup sooner than expected, although he had not heard anything official.

"I think we may have Ron back this week," O'Neal said. "That would be good for us."

Artest has been on the injured list since his Feb. 19 surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left thumb. He was expected to miss four to six weeks, but started shooting and jumping rope just days after the surgery was completed.

"Talking to him, he's really in a hurry to get back and he feels like he's going to come back," O'Neal said. "This is a guy that did 10 push-ups after he had heart surgery. If he can do that, I'm pretty sure he's going to try to get back."

Artest had surgery to repair a heart problem in the summer of 2002.

Pacers coach Rick Carlisle didn't disagree with O'Neal's unofficial medical update, but did say there had been no word from the medical staff indicating Artest's imminent return.

Sore knee

Carlisle gave O'Neal Monday off to rest his sore right knee and said the Pacers' leading scorer was "probable" for tonight's game.

O'Neal, who is battling tendinitis, said the time between games this week might afford him some much-needed rest.

"My knee is really struggling a lot when I play back-to-back games and play a lot of minutes," O'Neal said. "I definitely want to be able to play these next two games. Then there's a day off after that. And as long as I can put some days between games, I think I can get through the season."

http://www.indystar.com/articles/7/125716-5577-036.html

 

[TheGeneral+]

OAKLAND -- Do you believe in miracles?

Uh, forget about it.

When last seen starting for the Golden State Warriors, Avery Johnson led an injury-plagued club coming off a 34-win season to a 50-32 record and a berth in the Western Conference playoffs.

Ah, but that was then (10 years ago), and this is now: one of the low points of his 16-year career -- a scoreless effort in eight borderline embarrassing minutes, helping dig a hole that led to a 96-88 loss to the Indiana Pacers at the Arena.

The Warriors knew this had the potential to be a rough one. After all, they'd suffered an 11-point loss to these same Pacers a week ago in Indianapolis while they enjoyed the benefit of having a point-guard tandem of Speedy Claxton and Nick Van Exel.

Tuesday, Johnson and Rusty LaRue stepped in for their injured teammates, and ... well, let's just say the team with the best record against Western Conference competition wasn't complaining.

Reggie Miller relived his glory days with five 3-pointers during a 21-point night, and Ron Artest came off the injured list to contribute 12 much-needed points as the Pacers improved on their Eastern Conference-leading record in the opener of a four-game Western swing.

Mike Dunleavy, who wound up playing more minutes at the point than Johnson and LaRue combined, had a brilliant game for the Warriors with 24 points, 20 rebounds and five assists. But little else positive can be said of the eight-point home loss.

In fact, the game got really ugly with 3:23 remaining when Clifford Robinson and Jermaine O'Neal, who just seconds earlier had received technical fouls, were ejected for a verbal altercation.

At least two water bottles were thrown onto the court in the direction of the Pacers' bench as Robinson and O'Neal continued their war of words as each was being dragged toward his locker room. O'Neal was nearly hit with a cup of beer as he approached the tunnel leading to the visitors' locker room.

Johnson, who made 71 starts in place of injured Tim Hardaway during Chris Webber's one and only season with the Warriors (1993-94), was correct when he predicted beforehand, "You won't see me playing like Speedy, and you won't see me playing like Nick."

Unfortunately for the 38-year-old, what the 16,836 in attendance saw was him playing like LaRue -- and that's not good.

The Warriors would eventually make a run and close within four with still more than a minute to play, but for all intents and purposes, the game was lost in the opening two minutes of the second half, during which an 8-0 Pacers flurry blew open a 61-37 lead.

Johnson didn't help matters by missing two early shots in the third quarter -- a wild right-hander in the lane that hit glass only and a wide-open 14-footer that barely caught iron.

Less than three minutes into the period, Warriors coach Eric Musselman uncharacteristically called for a timeout and sat both Johnson and Erick Dampier, the latter for no apparent reason.

Neither returned, Dampier finishing with 11 points and seven rebounds in 21 minutes.

The Warriors endured unquestionably their worst half of basketball on the home court this season en route to a 52-36 halftime deficit.


NOTES: Surgery update: The Warriors' medical staff was last seen Tuesday night examining an MRI taken on Van Exel's ailing left knee Monday. A diagnosis is expected to be announced today. ... Meanwhile, in Chicago, third-string center Evan Eschmeyer underwent surgery on his left knee. His season formally is over before it began.

http://www.timesstar.com

 

[TheGeneral+]

LOS ANGELES -- Good shooting can make up for a lot of problems, as the Indiana Pacers proved Wednesday.

The Pacers negated 21 turnovers by hitting 11-of-22 3-point shots for a 101-94 overtime victory over the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center.

Indiana outscored L.A. 14-7 in the extra period.

The Pacers (45-16) have defeated the Clippers in 19 of the previous 21 meetings. Los Angeles, which has lost 10 of its past 13 games, dropped to 25-35.

Ron Artest scored eight of the Pacers' final nine points in regulation and led the Pacers with 25 points. Jermaine O'Neal added 19 points and 17 rebounds.

Jamaal Tinsley scored 17 points. Reggie Miller scored just six, but hit a big 3-pointer off an inbounds pass with 1:49 remaining in overtime.

That shot opened a three-point lead. O'Neal added a 10-footer, Tinsley two free throws and Jeff Foster a rebound basket to close the scoring.

Elton Brand led L.A. with 24 points, but was shut down by Foster in the final period and overtime. He scored just two points after the third quarter.

http://www.indystar.com/articles/0/126292-1650-094.html

 

[TheGeneral+]

LOS ANGELES -- Ordinarily, the Indiana Pacers would have flown directly from Los Angeles to Utah after Wednesday night's victory over the Clippers.

This hasn't been an ordinary season, however, so the Pacers (45-16) were rewarded with a side trip to Las Vegas for what they figure will be their last bit of organized fun heading into the season's stretch run of 21 regular-season games.

The Pacers checked into the Bellagio, one of the most luxurious hotels and casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, after a short flight from Los Angeles. They were to fly to Salt Lake City on Thursday evening and have a shootaround this morning in preparation for tonight's game against the Jazz.

Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said the players approached him about the trip a couple of weeks ago. He referred the matter to CEO Donnie Walsh and team president Larry Bird and received their OK.

"They felt the way the team has played over the course of the year, these guys deserve it," Carlisle said. "I think it's a great statement about the franchise, that it takes care of its players and rewards them for great effort and winning."

Most of the players were hesitant to talk about the excursion, fearing it might appear as if they're not taking the final two games of their Western trip seriously.

Jermaine O'Neal, however, believes it will prove beneficial.

"It's important," he said. "Sometimes you get burned out.

"Days like (Thursday) will be great for us, to get away and do some things as a team."

Carlisle, speaking shortly after the win over the Clippers, wasn't ready to consider if the bright lights would blind his players to the task of playing the Jazz.

"Right now I'm going to enjoy this win," he said. "The Utah game is two days away.

"I'm pretty confident we'll show up and play well."

http://www.indystar.com/articles/7/126525-7117-036.html

 

[TheGeneral+]

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - After blowing a 15-point lead and falling behind in the fourth quarter, Indiana forward Ron Artest was frustrated.

The Pacers had won the first two contests on a four-game road trip and were coasting toward another win when they let the Utah Jazz rally and take a brief lead. It didn't last long, though, thanks to Artest scoring eight of his 17 points in the fourth quarter of Indiana's 96-88 win Friday night.

"We were pretty upset about that," Artest said. "We know how important, how hard it is to get leads, and to give it up on a couple possessions, that's not characteristic of us. Actually it has been, but we know we can do better."

Artest, playing in just his third game back from thumb surgery, has scored in double figures each time. He broke an 86-all tie with consecutive layups late in the fourth quarter as Indiana regained control and won its fourth straight.

Indiana's Reggie Miller sealed the win on a three-pointer with 24.9 seconds left and scored 16 points. Jermaine O'Neal had 30 points and 10 rebounds and Fred Jones scored 10 for the Pacers, who have won eight of their last nine.

"We're really good when we physically pound you on the defensive end and also get out in transition and physically pound you on the offensive end. That's what makes this team so good and I think that's been the difference," O'Neal said. "We're a very physical team. We have a lot of size and can hurt you on a lot of post ups. We just keep sending them at you."

Andrei Kirilenko had 19 points, nine rebounds and five blocks for Utah, which had won four straight.

The Jazz outrebounded the Pacers 42-29, but Indiana made up for it at the free throw line, going 34-for-38. Indiana, which swept the Jazz for the first time since the 1999-2000 season, has won eight of 10.

The Jazz rallied after falling way behind in the third quarter and led briefly in the fourth, but in the end they could not stop Artest and Miller.

"It wasn't consistent defensively like previous games," said Kirilenko, who also had six turnovers.

Mo Williams, who had eight points for Utah, tied the game at 86-all on two free throws with 3:41 remaining, but Artest made two straight layups to put Indiana back up by four and Miller sealed it with his three-pointer.

The game was physical and featured several collisions and knockdowns, but no fights broke out. Utah coach Jerry Sloan and Greg Ostertag both got technicals, but once the game got close in the fourth quarter tempers on both sides simmered down.

Miller hit a three-pointer and O'Neal followed with a basket to put the Pacers up 70-55 early in the third, but Carlos Arroyo helped the Jazz trim the margin to 72-66 by the end of the period. He was fouled on a jumper from the top of the key and converted the three-point play, then hit another jumper in a 9-0 Utah run.

In the fourth, Raja Bell hit a jumper to keep the Jazz within five at 78-73, then Raul Lopez drove for a reverse layup that made it 78-75 - the closest Utah had been since the first quarter. After a timeout, Artest missed from way outside, and Kirilenko had a two-handed dunk.

Artest put back an offensive rebound, then Williams answered with a long jumper. The Jazz got a defensive rebound and Kirilenko took it for a one-handed dunk over O'Neal to give Utah its first lead with 5:55 remaining.

It was also Utah's only lead. O'Neal scored the next four points and Indiana never trailed again.

"We were hoping to get a spurt at the end," Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said. "We know that Utah is a great second-half team. They kept coming at us."

Notes: Jazz guard Gordan Giricek missed the game to be in Orlando with his wife, who gave birth to a baby girl Friday afternoon. ... Utah had seven offensive rebounds in the first quarter, but Indiana was 10-for-15 from the field to take a 35-23 lead.

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[TheGeneral+]

DENVER -- How long has it been since the Indiana Pacers swept a Western road trip of four games or more? Longer than Reggie Miller's memory. Or career, for that matter. "I don't think I've ever done it," said Miller, the 17th-year veteran.

No, he hasn't. But that doesn't begin to describe the historic opportunity that awaits the Pacers when they play Denver tonight at the Pepsi Center.

No team in the Pacers' NBA history, which began in 1976, has escaped an unabbreviated Western road trip without a blemish. Technically, neither did any team in the franchise's ABA history, which began in 1967.

The ABA schedule-makers had little regard for geography, and tended to mix East and West. The 1969-70 Pacers team swept a five-game trip that took them through Carolina, Miami, Kentucky, Los Angeles and Denver, but only two of those games were against Western teams.

The 1987-88 NBA team, on which Miller was a rookie, swept a three-game swing through Los Angeles, Golden State and Phoenix. The truer test, however, comes in the longer journeys. The Pacers have managed winning records on Western trips of at least four games just six times in Miller's career.

That leaves an impressive niche to be filled tonight, although it's not foremost on the minds of the Pacers.

"I don't want to talk too much about it," said Jermaine O'Neal, who led Friday's 96-88 win over Utah with 30 points and 10 rebounds, tying Dale Davis for the franchise's NBA career record in double-doubles (158). "But if we do what we've been doing the last three games, we should have no problem."

The more meaningful point to the Pacers is how they have handled the competition from the Western Conference. The West is widely regarded as superior to the East, but the Pacers have bucked the stereotype. They are 17-6 against Western teams, 7-5 on the road. No other Eastern team has done better.

The best Western teams, however, have been even more successful against Eastern competition. Sacramento is 20-3, Minnesota is 23-5 and the Lakers are 19-5.

To the Pacers, being labeled as the best Eastern team is like being regarded as the tallest person in a crowd of short people. Their goal is to transcend their conference, not rule it.

Their 46-16 record is the best in the league, thanks to Sacramento's loss at Miami Saturday. That won't mean a thing when the playoffs begin, but for now it qualifies them for membership among the contenders.

"A lot of people want to make a big deal about the East and West," Ron Artest said. "We want to make a big deal out of the whole league. We want to beat whoever we play next."

Scot Pollard is the Pacers' resident expert on comparisons of the two conferences, having played the previous five seasons in Sacramento. He believes the West's superiority is exaggerated.

"It's kind of a bandwagon thing," he said. "It gets talked about so much it kind of builds on itself. It's not the quality of play, it's the style. There are good players on every team."

So, the Pacers would like to sweep their trip. More important, they would like to further establish themselves as a legitimate title contender. Most importantly, however, they would like to win their next game. And just keep doing that.

"I don't want to get too high or too low," Miller said. "Anytime you start thinking you're great, there's something lurking behind one of those doors. We're going to keep it on an even keel and take it game by game. I know it's a cliché, but we don't want to get too full of ourselves. We just have to continue to get better."

http://www.indystar.com

 

[TheGeneral+]

TONIGHT: The Denver Nuggets (33-30) play the Indiana Pacers (46-16). Tip-off at the Pepsi Center is scheduled for 8:10.

SEASON SERIES: Denver lost 71-60 at Indiana on Nov. 4.

KEY STAT: The Pacers are the NBA's best road team with a 22-10 record and were in their hotels (we assume) resting on Saturday night while the Nuggets played a game.

NUGGETS UPDATE: Denver played Detroit on Saturday night at the Pepsi Center. ... Earl Boykins led the Nuggets with 18 points in the last meeting with the Pacers.

PACERS UPDATE: Indiana is coming off a 96-88 victory at Utah, making the Pacers the first team to clinch a playoff spot this season. ... Jermaine O'Neal collected 30 points and 10 rebounds and fellow All-Star Ron Artest scored eight of his 17 points in the fourth quarter. ... Reggie Miller is starting to get into vintage form, making 4-of-7 3-pointers for 16 points.

http://www.dailycamera.com

 

[TheGeneral+]

DENVER (AP) -- Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle warned his team not to take the Denver Nuggets lightly.

Jermaine O'Neal had 31 points and 10 rebounds, and the Pacers and won their fifth straight game and clinched a playoff berth with a 103-94 victory over the Nuggets on Sunday night.

"I told them it wasn't going to be easy coming off of what happened to them last night," Carlisle said referring to Denver's 97-66 loss to Detroit on Saturday. "And it was a team that showed some real fight tonight."

Anthony Johnson added 21 points for the Pacers, who shot 50 percent and clinched their seventh consecutive playoff spot. They made the playoffs for the 14th time in 15 years.

"This is a mature team," O'Neal said. "We focus and we know what the task is at hand."

Carmelo Anthony had 29 points for Denver. Voshon Lenard and Andre Miller had 12 each for the Nuggets, who have lost three straight and eight of their last nine.

"This was a tough loss for us," Denver coach Jeff Bzdelik said. "They are all tough because this is the first time where many of us have gone through the experience where every game was a critical game."

Denver got within 90-88 on Anthony's layup, but O'Neal muscled a shot over Francisco Elson and hit the free throw with 1:36 left. The Nuggets never got closer than four points the rest of the way as the Pacers sank 10 of 11 free throws.

"Really it was (Ron) Artest and Jermaine making great passes out of the post for wide-open shots that got AJ going. Then when they went to single coverage, Jermaine was just too much for them to handle down there."

Trailing by 11, Anthony had two dunks and eight points in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter, with Denver cutting the deficit to 85-77. The Pacers went scoreless on their next four possessions, and Earl Boykins sank two free throws to make it 85-82.

O'Neal ended a three-minute scoring drought with a jumper.

Miller's layup off a steal got the Nuggets to 88-86 with 2:57 remaining. Johnson countered with a jumper off a bank shot.

"In the second half we competed," Anthony said of the comeback. "But when you get down by 22 points, you have to play perfect the rest of the way."

Johnson had five points, including a 3-pointer early, and Indiana extended its lead to 65-43.

Boykins made it 75-65 with a 3-pointer with 1:21 left in the third quarter. Indiana took a 79-68 lead into the fourth quarter on Ron Artest's two free throws in the last 30 seconds.

With the Nuggets doubling down on O'Neal, Johnson buried three long jumpers late in the second period to help the Pacers take a 53-41 lead into halftime. Earlier, Denver had a 9-0 run, five from Anthony, that drew the Nuggets within 33-31.

Anthony, 3-for-6 in the quarter, had a reverse layup to make it 38-33 before Johnson accounted for Indiana's next six points. The Pacers closed the second quarter with five points from Reggie Miller, a finger-roll layup by Artest and a 12-point lead.

Lenard had 10 points, at one point hitting four straight shots, but the Nuggets trailed 29-22 after one quarter.

Notes: O'Neal drew a technical after throwing the ball off the basketball standard. ... The win gave the Pacers 47, the most in the NBA. Sacramento won its 46th by beating Orlando 107-90. ... The Pacers are 18-6 vs. the Western Conference. ... Denver is 9-10 on the second night of back-to-back games. The Nuggets scored 94 points after having 66 on Saturday against Detroit.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com

 

[TheGeneral+]

The Pacers are 47-16 following their fifth straight win, a half-game ahead of Sacramento in the overall standings.

Indiana still leads the Central Division by seven and a-half over Detroit.

http://www.whnt19.com/Global/story.asp?S=1695488

 

[TheGeneral+]

Pacers 94, Raptors 84 -- Ron Artest shut down Vince Carter in the fourth quarter and host Indiana scored the first eight points of overtime to win its sixth in a row.

Jamaal Tinsley opened the extra period with a 3-pointer, Jermaine O'Neal made a jumper and Reggie Miller added a deep 3-pointer as the shot clock was winding down to give Indiana an 89-81 lead.

Artest led Indiana with 23 points, and O'Neal overcame a poor shooting night to finish with 20 points and 18 rebounds.

Carter led Toronto with 28 points, but managed just one point after the third quarter. He missed two chances to put the Raptors ahead in the final 30 seconds of regulation.

http://www.ohio.com

 

[TheGeneral+]

If the Boston Celtics somehow grab the Eastern Conference's eighth playoff spot, the Indiana Pacers will not be a good matchup for them.

Reggie Miller scored 18 points and Al Harrington added 16 to lead the Pacers to their seventh straight win, 99-81 over the Celtics on Friday night.

The Pacers, who lost to the Celtics in six games in the opening round last year, won three of four games in the season series. Indiana has the conference's best record.

After nearly blowing big leads in Denver and Golden State earlier this month, the Pacers were focused during this game. Many times, their bench was up and cheering big plays.

"That was the emphasis every timeout -- to try and keep the lead and close the game out," Harrington said. "Every timeout we were reminded what happened in Golden State. We were saying `We got `em down. Now we have to finish the game out."'

Paul Pierce had 21 points for Boston, reaching 10,000 points faster than anyone in Celtics history -- in his 431st game. Larry Bird reached the plateau in his 436th game.

With the loss, Boston fell a half game behind Miami for the conference's final playoff spot. Miami beat Seattle 82-74.

Indiana started to take control with a 10-1 run over the final 31/2 minutes of the first half for a 48-39 lead. Ron Artest had seven points in the spree.

The Pacers opened the second half by scoring 13 of the first 16 points to build its lead to 61-42 on Miller's free throw. It was 72-50 on Harrington's basket in the final minute of the quarter.

"We were trying to make it a point to take control," Artest said. "We didn't want to let those guys back into the game. We knew how dangerous Paul could be."

Indiana, which has allowed the second-fewest points in the league, never let Boston within 16 points in the fourth quarter.

It was the second straight loss for Boston after six consecutive wins.

"This is probably the hardest week that we've had all season," said Celtics coach John Carroll, whose team was coming off a loss to the Lakers. "(It) started with two wins and then we came back and played two teams you might see in the NBA Finals."

Jonathan Bender added 16 points for the Pacers, who didn't have a starter play more than 30 minutes.

Boston's Ricky Davis left the game with sprained left ankle early in the fourth quarter.

Notes:

Pierce recorded his 10,000th point on a 14-foot jumper with 8:08 left in the second quarter. He was given a standing ovation after the PA announcer acknowledged his accomplishment. "It's great to be a part of history," Pierce said after the game. ... Carroll sneaked up behind Pacers guard Kenny Anderson about 90 minutes before the game and gave him a bear hug outside the locker rooms. Anderson turned and said: "I'm glad you got some wins." Carroll responded with a smile and said: "You're happy. How about me?" Anderson played for the Celtics while Carroll was the assistant.

http://sfgate.com

 

[TheGeneral+]

LeBron James scored 26 points and forced Ron Artest to take a tough 3-pointer as the final horn sounded, leading the host Cavaliers to their sixth straight win, 107-104, yesterday over the Indiana Pacers.

Zydrunas Ilguaskas made two free throws with 36 seconds left and forced a big turnover seconds later for the Cavaliers, who improved to 10-3 since the All-Star break.

Many of those wins have come against some of the NBA's weaker teams, but by beating the NBA-leading Pacers, Cleveland moved into sixth place in the Eastern Conference.

The Cavaliers (30-36), who won just 17 games last season, have won six in a row for the first time since Dec. 5-16, 2000.

Jermaine O'Neal had 32 points for the Pacers, who had their seven-game winning streak stopped.

http://www.boston.com

 

[TheGeneral+]

The Indiana Pacers are far from oblivious about the details of their upcoming schedule.

It's a Pacers-friendly calendar in which 10 of their 16 remaining regular-season games are played at Conseco Fieldhouse.

Basking in that potential security and plotting a course to smash the franchise record for wins (58), however, is not an option they want to entertain just yet.

Instead, the Pacers (49-17) have contracted a case of collective tunnel vision. The only thing that matters right now, they insist, is the Portland Trail Blazers, tonight's opponent at the fieldhouse.

A victory would be No. 50 for the Eastern Conference-leading Pacers. They are also battling Sacramento for the league's best overall record, which brings home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.

But that's moving faster than the Pacers feel comfortable with these days.

"Beat Portland. That's pretty much it right now," Pacers All-Star forward Ron Artest said after Tuesday's practice. "It's more important just to win. If we do that, we get 50. . . . We just want to win our next game. That's how we've been approaching it. Half the time we don't even know who we play next."

Pacers point guard Jamaal Tinsley acknowledged the importance of the Pacers' 16-game playoff primer and admitted that finishing strong is the best and only way to hold off the challengers in the East.

"Detroit's right there and (New) Jersey's trying to make a run," he said. "We just have to worry about ourselves and control what we can control."

That kind of focus would be wise for any team facing the Trail Blazers.

Led by Marion, Ind., native Zach Randolph and explosive point guard Damon Stoudamire, the Blazers have scored huge wins over Sacramento and Minnesota (twice) in the past five days.

Portland traded veteran power forward Rasheed Wallace to Atlanta Feb. 9, changing not only the complexion of its current team but the franchise. Wallace has since been traded again, to Detroit.

The players acquired in the deal with Atlanta, Theo Ratliff and Shareef Abdur-Rahim, have bolstered the Blazers' frontcourt and kept alive faint playoff hopes.

"Portland right now is playing as well as anybody in the league," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "It's scary, when a team like Portland can make a trade and get two players like Ratliff and Abdur-Rahim in the same deal.

"The fact that Ratliff is starting and averaging six or seven blocks over the last three or four games tells you what kind of effect he can have. The fact that Abdur-Rahim is coming off the bench tells you what kind of depth they have in the frontcourt.

"They're a scary team because they can play any style. They're a good half-court team and good transition team. And they can protect the basket with their size and shot-blocking ability. You have to play a solid game at both ends of the floor to beat them."

The schedule gets more interesting after tonight, with Sacramento visiting town Friday and the Pacers playing at revitalized Memphis on Saturday night.

In fact, half of the Pacers' remaining opponents have .500 or better records. And there are several showdown games on tap, including an April 5 game at Detroit and an April 9 matchup at the fieldhouse against the two-time defending Eastern Conference champion Nets.

Talk of the future beyond this evening, though, is of no interest to Jermaine O'Neal.

"I seriously didn't know when we played Sacramento or who we played on Friday. And I think that's been the best situation for us, not really looking over any particular team and concentrating on whatever is in front of us," he said.

"Obviously, winning games here on our home court, we'll put a stranglehold on everything, whether it's the best record in the NBA or No. 1 in the Eastern Conference or whatever. We've just got to win these games and hopefully we can continue to do what we're doing and not look down the schedule."

http://www.indystar.com

 

[TheGeneral+]

Ron Artest scored 21 points and Reggie Miller added 18, as the Indiana Pacers defeated the Portland Trail Blazers, 80-71, on Wednesday at Conseco Fieldhouse.

Al Harrington chipped in 12 points and eight rebounds for Indiana, which has won eight of its last nine games. Jermaine O'Neal collected 10 points and 10 boards in the win.

The Pacers have won five in a row at home and improved to 26-6 as the host this season.

Indiana is off until Friday when it hosts the Sacramento Kings. This is the second and final contest of the season between the two teams. On December 7th, Sacramento defeated the Pacers, 91-88, at ARCO Arena.

The Pacers are in first place in the Central Division, 7 1/2 games ahead of the Detroit Pistons. Indiana is also the top seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

Artest has averaged 21 points and 5.5 rebounds in his last two games, while Miller has averaged 10.9 points in his last 10 contests.

http://www.sportsnetwork.com

 

[Dionysusaurus]

Hello Mr. General .....
when you think of certain things ....for instance cooking....well....you think of Betty Crocker (Only because Marth Stewart just isnt roliing in the dough now days!), when you think of Moses (or gun slingers), you think of Charelton Heston. When you think of no teeth, you think of Moms Mabley. But when I think of you ...... I think of a website that I thought was interesting! You may find it here;
http://members.iquest.net/~jaabbott_77/

Enjoy brother & keep up the good work!
Dionysusaurus aka Smokntbone



<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by The General:
Ron Artest scored 21 points and Reggie Miller added 18, as the Indiana Pacers defeated the Portland Trail Blazers, 80-71, on Wednesday at Conseco Fieldhouse.

Al Harrington chipped in 12 points and eight rebounds for Indiana, which has won eight of its last nine games. Jermaine O'Neal collected 10 points and 10 boards in the win.

The Pacers have won five in a row at home and improved to 26-6 as the host this season.

Indiana is off until Friday when it hosts the Sacramento Kings. This is the second and final contest of the season between the two teams. On December 7th, Sacramento defeated the Pacers, 91-88, at ARCO Arena.

The Pacers are in first place in the Central Division, 7 1/2 games ahead of the Detroit Pistons. Indiana is also the top seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

Artest has averaged 21 points and 5.5 rebounds in his last two games, while Miller has averaged 10.9 points in his last 10 contests.

http://www.sportsnetwork.com<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

[TheGeneral+]

Bad habits always take their toll eventually. Perhaps now the Indiana Pacers have the incentive to address their biggest flaw more seriously.

Their tendency to sleep on comfortable leads finally brought about a nightmare in Friday's 94-92 loss to Sacramento at Conseco Fieldhouse.

Mike Bibby's 19-footer with 1.2 seconds remaining was the game-winner, but the Pacers' lethargy in the second half was the game-loser.

"We've got to learn from this; learn that great starts don't guarantee anything on your home floor," coach Rick Carlisle said. "Being able to defend your home floor in the playoffs is absolutely essential. We left too much to chance."

The Pacers played without All-Star forward Ron Artest, who served a one-game suspension for an elbow that caught Derek Anderson's head in Wednesday's win over Portland. They also might have lost Jonathan Bender to another injury. Bender, who played a brilliant first half with 15 points on 6-of-6 shooting in nine minutes, sprained his right shoulder in the second quarter.

He was gingerly pulling on his clothes with his left hand afterward and is listed as doubtful for tonight's game at Memphis.

The Pacers' hopes of finishing with the NBA's best record are more doubtful, too. They dropped to 50-18, while the Kings improved to 50-19. Rather than a 21/2-game lead in the race to clinch homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs, the Pacers' advantage slipped to a half-game.

The Pacers play eight of their final 14 games at home. The Kings have a tougher schedule, with six home games out of their remaining 13 and road games in Los Angeles against the Lakers and at San Antonio, Dallas and Houston.

"We still have the league's best record and we still control where we're seeded and that's by winning games," Jermaine O'Neal said. "Tonight's game is over. There's nothing we can do about it.

"We played a pretty good game, but it wasn't good enough to beat those guys."

The season's 10th sellout crowd brought playoff atmosphere to the fieldhouse, as did the ticket scalpers outside. The Pacers followed up with outstanding play through most of the first half. They scored 35 points in the first quarter, built their lead to 17 early in the second and still led by 16 in the final two minutes of the half.

But Mike Bibby, who led all scorers with 25 points, hit an ominous 3-pointer with 51.3 seconds left, reducing the lead to 11.

The Pacers went on to score just 34 points in the second half, hitting 10-of-39 field goal attempts. They became bogged down in their halfcourt offense, laboring for every point, but their troubles began at the defensive end.

Lacking their first-half spark, they allowed the Kings to hit 20-of-38 shots. Sacramento, which leads the NBA in scoring, field goal percentage and 3-point percentage, took advantage of every minor breakdown.

Bibby scored 16 points in the half. Chris Webber added 12 then. Peja Stojakovic, the most anticipated threat because of Artest's absence, scored 17 points, seven blow his average, but former Pacer Brad Miller had 12 points and 13 rebounds off the bench.

O'Neal led Indiana with 23 points and nearly rescued the Pacers by scoring six of their final eight points. His dramatic rebound-dunk of Al Harrington's miss made it a one-point game with 1:39 left. His turnaround jumper in traffic with 38.8 seconds left tied the score. His two foul shots with 24.7 seconds left tied the score again.

But Bibby ended it but running to the right off a screen, then cutting back to the left and running off another. With Jamaal Tinsley struggling to fight through the pick, he hit the 19-foot clincher.

The Pacers had no timeouts left and had to settle for Jeff Foster's heave from halfcourt at the buzzer.

"We didn't have the same enthusiasm and energy the second half," said Foster, who finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds.

"We've done that all year, getting leads in the first quarter or second quarter, and for some reason we lose them by halftime or in the third quarter. We have to learn how to put teams away."

The Pacers outscored Sacramento 46-26 in the lane and 19-4 on fast-break points, and committed just 11 turnovers. But bad shooting negated all their advantages.

Tinsley and Reggie Miller combined to score just 12 points, hitting a combined 4-of-20.

Carlisle, however, didn't blame them for the loss, just as he didn't blame the loss of Artest.

"We could have shot an even-worse percentage and still won the game if we had kept ourselves playing at a high level," he said.

http://www.indystar.com

 

[TheGeneral+]

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- For the longest time this season, the Indiana Pacers fought the tendency to get comfortable in their own skin, knowing what it did to them late last season.

But it happened again Saturday night.

Three losses in their past four games have forged a different mood in the Pacers' locker room, including after Saturday night's numbing 99-95 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies before 16,808 at the Pyramid.

Haunted by a late-season collapse that cost them dearly before the playoffs last season, the Pacers displayed an inability to finish their business for the second consecutive night against a Western Conference playoff team.

Sacramento, tied with the Pacers for the NBA's best overall record at 50-19, did the honors Friday night by rallying from a 17-point deficit for a 94-92 win at Conseco Fieldhouse.

The Grizzlies stormed back from a 13-point margin to poke another hole in the Pacers' armor.

The Pacers were careless with the ball late and were unable to close out a team with an offensive arsenal that matched their own.

"I have serious concerns about our disposition at the defensive end," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "We've become a team that's very easy to play along with. What got us in the position we're in with our record was being a defense-first team, and somehow we've got to get back to that or we're going to struggle."

The Pacers' struggles were highlighted during the game's most crucial stretches, none more critical than the last five minutes of the game.

James Posey's layup and free throw that sent Jermaine O'Neal to the bench with his sixth foul with 1:29 to play capped a 12-0 Memphis run that pushed the Grizzlies over the top in a game that was marked by quality play on both sides all night.

Memphis shot 52.8 (38-of-72) percent from the floor compared to the Pacers' 50.7 percent.

Down 97-90 with 1:06 to play, the Pacers got a quick layup from Ron Artest and a 3-pointer from Jamaal Tinsley to cut the lead to two with 42 seconds to play.

But Reggie Miller's baseline jumper bounced off the back of the rim with seven seconds to play, ending any legitimate chance the Pacers had of recovering from yet another disappointing finish.

Posey sank two more free throws for the final margin, making Austin Croshere's desperation heave from 26 feet a formality.

It was a microcosm of a bigger problem for the Pacers, who've struggled lately to get the routine stops they did in becoming the NBA's first team to 50 wins.

Much like they have all season, the Pacers squandered an early lead and watched as the opposition rose to the occasion of playing one of the league's elite teams.

A four-point halftime cushion disappeared in the final two minutes of the third quarter for the Pacers, who failed to keep track of former Ball State star Theron Smith.

Smith's two 3-pointers, the latter providing the Grizzlies with a two-point lead with 21 seconds to play -- were crucial components in the home team's 29-23 scoring edge in the quarter.

"We've got to self-check ourselves. This is all us and that's not to discredit coach (Hubie) Brown and his team and what they're doing this year," said O'Neal, who pounded the Grizzlies for 28 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks before he fouled out. "But we shouldn't have lost this game. We shouldn't have lost last night's game.

"We put ourselves in positions when we jump out on teams and put them on their heels and we haven't had the killer instinct. We haven't had that dog in us. We've got to go home and figure out a way to get back on top of things. Because we actually look like a team that's fighting to get into the playoffs instead of the team with the best record in the league. We look undisciplined. And that's not us."

http://www.indystar.com/articles/3/131271-9573-039.html