Hornets-Pacers Preview

By JEFF MEZYDLO
Posted Feb 21 2012 12:15AM

A favorable stretch against some inferior opponents has allowed the Indiana Pacers to regroup following their longest losing streak of the season.

The Pacers look for a third consecutive victory when they host the lowly New Orleans Hornets on Tuesday night.

Indiana (19-12) snapped a five-game skid with a 93-88 win over New Jersey on Thursday, then followed with a 108-73 rout of Charlotte on Sunday.

Consecutive victories over a pair of teams with a combined 14 wins has the Pacers back on track. They have a chance to make further progress with games against New Orleans (7-24) and the four-win Bobcats before this weekend's All-Star break.

Roy Hibbert had 18 points with 14 rebounds while Danny Granger and former Hornet David West each scored 14 as the Pacers went 39 of 78 from the field Sunday. The 73 points allowed were the fewest by Indiana since an 86-73 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Nov. 25, 2010.

"I wish we could win them all like that," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said.

That's very much possible with their two remaining games this week.

Though the Pacers have lost six of seven to the Hornets, New Orleans is last in the Western Conference and looks to bounce back after its season-high three-game winning streak was snapped with a 101-93 loss at Oklahoma City on Monday.

Tuesday's contest marks West's first game against the team he spent the previous eight seasons with before signing with Indiana in December. Though West (12.5 points, 6.8 rebounds per game) has seen his scoring and rebounding production slip because he's surrounded with more talented players like Granger and Hibbert, he's averaged 16.1 points and 7.4 boards in the last seven games.

Headed to his first All-Star game, Hibbert is averaging 16.0 points and 11.0 rebounds in the last three. Despite being held to two and three rebounds in a 94-93 home win over the Hornets on Dec. 20, 2010, Hibbert has averaged 16.0 points in three career contests versus New Orleans at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

Indiana also could receive a boost if defensive stalwart George Hill returns Tuesday from an 11-game absence due to an ankle injury.

The Pacers are 14-5 with Hill on the court, allowing an average of 90.5 points and 41.6 percent shooting in those contests. They've given up 94.8 points per game on 44.5 percent shooting while going 5-7 without him this season.

"He's a sound basketball player," Vogel told the Pacers' official website. "He's a guy that's in his help spots all the time. He's a guy that's very good on the ball. Just his solid fundamentals defensively in transition and the halfcourt, as well, have been a factor."

Ex-Pacer Jarrett Jack had 18 points, five assists and five rebounds Monday as the Hornets fell to 2-1 on a six-game road stretch that continues after the All-Star break.

"It's a learning process for a young team like us," said second-year guard Greivis Vasquez, who had 15 points against the Thunder. "It doesn't come overnight."

Jack is averaging a career-high 14.9 points, but has totaled 18 on 6-of-23 shooting in three games at Indiana since he spent the 2008-09 season with the Pacers.

Hibbert leads Pacers past Hornets 117-108 in OT

Posted Feb 21 2012 11:19PM

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) Strong stretches by Darren Collison and Paul George and a career effort by first-time All-Star Roy Hibbert was enough to get the Indiana Pacers past the New Orleans Hornets.

Hibbert had a career-high 30 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Pacers to a 117-108 win in overtime against the Hornets on Tuesday night.

"They came out very aggressive, took the game away from us and kind of knocked us back on our heels," Hibbert said. "We were able to exist, hang on and got key buckets in the fourth quarter."

Paul George scored 20 points and Darren Collison had 18 points and eight rebounds for the Pacers, winners of three straight.

Trevor Ariza scored 21 points to lead the Hornets, who have lost 10 of their last 13. New Orleans, which snapped a three-game winning streak Monday at Oklahoma City, concludes a stretch of three games in three days - all on the road - Wednesday at Cleveland.

The Pacers went on a 10-0 run in overtime. Hibbert and Collison combined for eight points and West scored to take a 113-102 lead.

The Hornets, who missed six shots in overtime, scored back-to-back baskets and then only scored once more.

"We had our chances," Hornets coach Monty Williams said. "We had our chance in overtime and couldn't hit a shot."

George's finger roll layup tied the score at 91 with 3:09 to go in regulation and started an 8-1 run for the Pacers. Hibbert's jumper 37 seconds later put them ahead and Danny Granger's layup extended the lead to four with 1:50 remaining.

Jarrett Jack made a free throw for the Hornets before Hibbert's putback extended the advantage to 97-92 with about 1 1/2 minutes remaining.

Gustavo Ayon had three baskets in New Orleans' 6-2 run, cutting the deficit to 99-98 with 16.5 seconds left.

Collison was fouled and went to the line. He hit 1 of 2 free throws to make it 100-98 before Ariza tied score with a jumper with 5.4 seconds left.

George missed a jumper at the buzzer.

New Orleans took the lead right away in the first quarter and didn't give it up until the third.

"They challenged us on the defensive end and in the second half we rose to the challenge," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said.

The Pacers tied the score at 56 at the start of the second half when Granger hit a 3-pointer. However, the Hornets answered like they did all night, this time with a 3 by Greivis Vasquez to tie the score again.

The Pacers started to pull away after the score was tied at 74. Price was fouled and went to the line to give the Pacers a two-point lead. Then the Hornets bench was called for a technical and Price returned to the line to extend the lead to three.

A.J. Price hit a 3-pointer to increase the advantage to 80-74.

Solomon Jones made a field goal and later scored a free throw to pull the Hornets back within three, and Jack hit a 3 to tie the score.

The Pacers got within a point twice in the second quarter, but never took a lead. Each time the Pacers had a chance to tie it at the free throw line.

Hibbert scored two free throws and a hook shot midway through the quarter to make it 46-45.

Jack turned the ball over on the Hornets' next trip down the floor and West missed a short jumper. Then Jack was called for a technical and Granger missed the free throw.

Still the Pacers were 22 of 31 from the line.

Then Belinelli hit a 3-pointer and the Hornets had a four-point lead again, and took a 56-53 advantage at halftime.

With just seven wins, the Hornets are the worst in the West, but Tuesday showed they can play better than what their record indicates.

"People look at our record and think that we're not competing," Jack said. "It seems like it's been all season long that we come out really competitive, but just can't put a full 48-minute stretch together."

NOTES: The Hornets are 0-9 this season in games they've given up 100 points or more and was the first win for the Pacers when giving up 100 points or more. ... This was the first time Pacers F David West faced his former team, where he played from 2003-11. ... Hornets C Emeka Okafor was out with sore left knee. ... Hornets F Jason Smith was out with a concussion. ... Hornets G Eric Gordon sat out with right knee contusion. ... Carl Landry was out with a sprained MCL.

Notebook: Pacers 117, Hornets 108

Posted Tuesday February 21, 2012 11:27PM

By Conrad Brunner, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: The closer the All-Star Game gets, the more Roy Hibbert is looking like he belongs. Indiana's 7-foot-2 center racked up a career-high 30 points, including a pair of second-chance buckets in a 13-2 overtime run that blew the game open, as the Pacers survived a determined effort by New Orleans for a 117-108 victory Tuesday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Hibbert added 13 rebounds for his third straight double-double and 14th of the season and all five Indiana starters scored in double figures. That included Hibbert's fellow All-Star Weekend participant, Paul George, who scored 20 as he warms up for the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge and the Sprite Slam Dunk contest. The Pacers (20-12) won their third in a row while the Hornets (7-25) dropped their second straight despite 21 points from Trevor Ariza.

QUOTABLE: "That's good but more importantly we won the game. This is one game. We must wrap it up and move on."
-- Hibbert on his career high

THE STAT: In recording three consecutive double-doubles, Hibbert has racked up 61 points (20.3), 38 rebounds (12.7) and shot 23-for-36 (63.9 percent).

TURNING POINT: After trailing most of the night, Indiana put together a 15-5 run to take a 97-92 lead on a Hibbert tip-in with 1:28 remaining. But Gustavo Ayon scored three straight baskets as the Hornets cut it to 99-98 and after Darren Collison missed a free throw, Ariza sent it to overtime with a fallaway jumper with 5.1 seconds remaining. Danny Granger opened the extra session with a 3-pointer that kick-started the Pacers, who scored on their first six possessions to open a 113-102 lead.

QUOTABLE II: "They came out shooting, fighting and clawing. They shot very well in the first half. We knew that (Hornets coach) Monty (Williams) would have them ready to play and that we would have to be up to the challenge. We were able to weather the storm. And in the fourth quarter, put things together and keep them together. In the overtime, we had a couple of putbacks and it was just being aggressive and having toughness on our part."
-- Indiana's David West on his first game against his former team

HOT: Hibbert shot 11-for-17 overall and was 8-for-12 from the free throw line. Collison shot 8-for-11 as the Indiana starters combined for a season-high 98 points. ... Chris Kaman continued his resurgent play for New Orleans with 17 points on 8-for-14 shooting, and Jarrett Jack came off the bench to produce 19 points, 10 assists and five rebounds for the Hornets.

NOT: Granger's 3-pointer in overtime salvaged a forgettable night in which he shot 4-for-14, including 2-for-7 from the arc.

QUOTABLE III: "They were in our paint all game. They scored a lot of points in the paint. I don't know any team that's going to win if you don't control the paint like that. It wasn't like they were hitting a bunch of 3s or anything like that. They got to the basket a lot. That big dude in the middle over there (Hibbert) is pretty tough."
-- Ariza

GOOD MOVE: Though the Pacers have to travel to Charlotte to complete a back-to-back set Wednesday, coach Frank Vogel stuck with his starters much more than usual as all five played at least 38 minutes. But all five were effective on a night when the bench struggled.

BAD MOVE: Though he had little choice because of injuries that have stripped his team of frontcourt depth, Williams attempted to defend Hibbert and West with a variety of undersized or outmanned Hornets including 10-day contract signee Solomon Jones, 6-foot-8 rookie Lance Thomas and 6-foot-9 Al-Farouq Aminu, and the results were predictable as Indiana's big men dominated the paint.

NOTABLE: All five Indiana starters scored in double figures for the sixth time this season (5-1). ... Collison had the 1,000th assist of his career in the fourth quarter. ... Hibbert shed the clear facemask he had worn the past three weeks to protect a broken nose sustained Jan. 22. ... Indiana sixth man George Hill missed his 12th straight game. Hill said he's fine with straight-line movement but needs to regain his lateral mobility. Vogel said he expects Hill to be available "on a limited basis" for Wednesday's game in Charlotte. ... Indiana had a 19-2 edge in second-chance points, with Hibbert pulling seven of its 13 offensive boards. ... New Orleans was without leading scorer Eric Gordon (knee) and big men Carl Landry (knee), Emeka Okafor (knee) and Jason Smith (concussion).

UP NEXT: For the Pacers, Wednesday @ Charlotte, Feb. 28 vs. Golden State, March 3 @ New Orleans. For the Hornets, Wednesday @ Cleveland, Feb. 28 @ Chicago, Feb. 29 vs. Toronto.

• Hornets: Gordon, Landry
• Pacers: --

• Hornets: Jack, Kaman, Williams
• Pacers: --

• Lead Changes: 7
• Times Tied: 12

• Arena: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
• Officials: #55 Bill Kennedy, #47 Bennie Adams, #74 Curtis Blair
• Attendance: 10508
• Duration: 2:33