By Malinda Murray
bobcats.com
April 12, 2008
Boxscore | Play-By-Play | Highlights | Recaps

As the season begins to wind to a close, the Bobcats are still looking at each and every game as a chance to improve as a team and build momentum for next year. “We want to play all 82 games the best we can,” said Head Coach Sam Vincent. “I think we’re playing to ensure we have a good start next season.”
On Saturday night, they took another step in the right direction as they headed into Indiana to face a Pacers team still fighting for the eighth and final spot in the playoffs.
Charlotte withstood Indiana’s challenge, holding off a late Pacers charge to come away with a 107-103 win and in the process, put a serious dent in Indiana’s chances of reaching the postseason.
Jason Richardson and Jared Dudley helped the Bobcats get off to a good start, combining for 30 points in the first half to help Charlotte build a 57-52 lead at halftime.
In the third quarter, the Bobcats built on their advantage, pushing their lead to double-figures on a jump shot by Raymond Felton with 2:09 remaining in the period.
Felton and Nazr Mohammed teamed up to score the first eight Charlotte points in the fourth quarter to build Charlotte’s margin to 12, the largest of the game.
“Give them credit,” said Pacers Head Coach Jim O’Brien. “They were a step quicker than us almost the entire game. They’re faster than we are. We had a difficult time keeping them out of the paint and off the glass.”
Even with their double-figure lead, the Bobcats knew they couldn’t get too comfortable as Indiana was going to make a final push to try to get the win. Travis Deiner connected on a three-pointer followed by a trey from Danny Granger that trimmed the Bobcats lead to five with 5:24 left.
With Charlotte holding a six-point advantage with 2:26 left remaining, Emeka Okafor was called for a goal tend. The basket, credited to Jeff Foster, brought Indiana to within four.
With 1:07 remaining, Mike Dunleavy missed a three-pointer, but Deiner grabbed the offensive rebound and nailed a triple to pull the Pacers within one, 101-100.
Okafor was fouled on the other end and knocked down two free throws to push Charlotte's lead back to three. Indiana's Marquis Daniels missed a turnaround jumper and Richardson snared the rebound and gave the ball to Felton. Felton again made it a two possession game with 24 seconds remaining as he was fouled and went to the line and knocked down both free throws.
A three-pointer from Granger gave the Pacers hope, but Richardson knocked down two more free throws to give the Bobcats a 107-103 edge. Charlotte's defense held, not allowing Indiana to score again.
“It shows the growth this team has had,” said Vincent as he talked about how the Bobcats were able to come away with the win. “Now we are making the right decisions.”

“Rebounding was the key,” said Matt Carroll as he talked about the win. “There have been a lot of games this year where we were on the opposite end of the rebounding total. It’s been our Achilles heel.”
Tonight though, the Bobcats dominated the boards, snaring 59 rebounds compared to 43 by Indiana. Charlotte also controlled the offensive glass grabbing 20 offensive rebounds.
With their prowess on the boards, Charlotte was able to rule down low and get a lot of second opportunities at the basket. The play of their big men played a big part in this and in the end was a big reason why the Bobcats were able to snag not only the win, but the season series from the Pacers.
Okafor posted his 39th double-double of the season with 14 points and 18 rebounds while Mohammed came off the bench to tally 16 points and 13 rebounds.
Dudley, who got the start on the Bobcats front line, also had an impressive night. He not only posted a season-best 19 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the field and a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line, he also added eight rebounds and two assists and did a lot of little things that often go unnoticed on the stat sheet.

Indiana stayed in the game because of their ability to knock down the three-ball. Indiana made 13 three-pointers while the Bobcats made just four.
In the fourth quarter alone, the Pacers knocked down seven three-pointers. Four of those seven three-pointers came from Granger. Granger, scored 17 of his career-high 37 points in the final quarter despite picking up his fifth foul with 10:48 left in the game. He was a major reason why the Pacers were able to narrow the Bobcats' advantage.
“They hit a lot of big shots in the fourth quarter, seven three pointers,” said Carroll. “We knew that they would make that run. Danny Granger is a good player and they have a lot of good shooters on their team. We knew they’d come back.”

There are several different players that could claim this honor. Okafor, Mohammed and Dudley all had big contributions.
Richardson meanwhile continues to perform remarkably. Tonight he posted 26 points, five rebounds, two assists, three steals and a block. One of the highlights of the night for Richardson came early in the game when he broke away in the open court and finished with a 360-degree dunk.
The nod though has to go to Raymond Felton. He once again came up big when the team needed it most, scoring five of the Bobcats final 10 points. He finished the game with another double-double posting 18 points on 7-of-16 shooting along with 12 assists.

Granger made anyone who had him on their fantasy team very happy tonight. He shot 12-of-24 from the field and 6-of-13 from three-point range en route to his 37 points. He also added five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block.
For the Bobcats, Richardson’s stat line is a huge plus for anyone who has him on their playoff roster.

The Bobcats were assertive in the paint and as a result got to the free throw line often. They went 33-of-43 from the charity stripe. The Pacers went 16-of-25 from the foul line.
“We had some guys really do some good things at the free throw line,” remarked Vincent.

“When we can beat someone in rebounding, it puts a smile on our face,” said Vincent.

BOBCATS: Sean May (right knee surgery), Adam Morrison (torn left ACL), Othella Harrington (left knee discomfort), Derek Anderson (lateral back pain), Gerald Wallace (left groin strain)
PACERS: Jamaal Tinsley (sore left knee)

Tuesday, April 15 - Bobcats at New Jersey Nets - 7:30 p.m.
TV - FSN South; Radio - WOLS OLDIES 106.1 FM