Pacers-Rockets Preview

By KATE HEDLIN
Posted Apr 01 2012 1:41AM

Strong play at home has kept the Houston Rockets in contention for a playoff spot.

The Rockets will try for their third straight victory at the Toyota Center on Sunday night when they host the Indiana Pacers.

Just 2 1/2 games separate four teams for the final three playoff spots in the Western Conference, with the Rockets (28-24) currently tied with Denver for the seventh seed.

They have won four of six overall, including a 98-89 win over Memphis on Friday as they improved to 20-7 at home this season.

Houston has won five of its last six at the Toyota Center and is averaging 105.1 points in its last eight games there. However, eight of the Rockets' last 13 games are on the road, including a four-game trip that starts Monday at league-leading Chicago.

Knowing that, Houston is trying to take advantage of its remaining home games, particularly ones against teams ahead of it in the standings.

Marcus Camby had 16 rebounds and six blocked shots Friday while Goran Dragic scored a season-high 25 points. The Rockets led the entire way, shooting 52.1 percent.

Camby, signed earlier this month, started in place of Samuel Dalembert (flu) and played a season-high 36 minutes despite dealing with torn ligaments in his left wrist.

"Right now, this is our playoffs," Camby said. "I can't afford to sit out. We have a shortage of guys and a shortage of big guys as it is."

Dalembert came off the bench and played 17 minutes, but Kyle Lowry (bacterial infection) and Kevin Martin (strained right shoulder) have been out for extended time and remain sidelined.

Like the Rockets, the Pacers (30-21) are trying to improve their playoff position. They are in fifth place in the East - one-half game up on Atlanta - as they try to move into one of the top four spots and earn homecourt advantage in the first round.

However, Indiana has lost two of three - both on the road. The Pacers fell 112-103 at San Antonio on Saturday despite shooting 53.2 percent.

Danny Granger and Paul George each scored 18 points but it wasn't nearly enough for Indiana, which trailed the entire game.

Indiana has allowed an average of 103.5 points in its last six road games - nearly 10 higher than its season average.

The Pacers won't have much time for rest in the season's home stretch. This contest concludes the first of three sets of back-to-backs for Indiana over the next week.

"The rest of our schedule is kind of tough. We don't have any days off in between back-to-backs and whatnot," Granger said. "We really have to close out these last 14 and 15 games and go 12-2, 12-3 - you know, something like that, to really get a lot of momentum going into the playoffs."

The Rockets swept last season's two-game series with the Pacers.

Granger has 32 as Pacers top Rockets 104-102 in OT

By KRISTIE RIEKEN
Posted Apr 02 2012 12:44AM

HOUSTON (AP) After a tough loss to San Antonio on Saturday night, the Indiana Pacers were determined to end their short trip to the Lone Star state with a win.

They barely did it, escaping Houston with a 104-102 victory over the Rockets in overtime on Sunday night.

"We needed this win, and now we get to go home," said Pacers forward Danny Granger, who scored 32 points.

The win keeps Indiana in fifth place in the Eastern Conference and drops Houston to eighth in the West.

The Pacers led by one when Paul George turned the ball over. Courtney Lee grabbed it and looked to have tied the ball up for Houston, but he stumbled trying to wrestle it away from the Pacers and was called for traveling.

"We were tangled up for about 10 seconds and then I was able to rip it away," Lee said. "I was trying to call a timeout, but my feet didn't stop moving, I guess, and that's all they saw."

Granger made two free throws with 15.7 seconds left in overtime before Chandler Parsons made a layup on the other end to again cut the lead to 1. Darren Collison made the first of two free throws with 10.5 seconds left and Granger blocked a shot by Parsons at the buzzer to give Indiana the victory.

The Pacers only outrebounded Houston by one in regulation, but dominated the boards in overtime, getting nine while Houston had none. They finished with 54 - the most any team has had against the Rockets this season.

"They did a good job of getting rebounds and second chance points in the first half," said Indiana's Roy Hibbert, who grabbed four in overtime. "In overtime we made a concerted emphasis to get rebounds and we were fortunate that we got them."

Goran Dragic led the Rockets with 22 points and Lee added 20.

The Pacers overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to force overtime and controlled the early part of the extra period.

A three-point play by George followed by a 3-pointer from Granger gave Indiana a 101-95 lead with 2 minutes left in overtime. But Houston scored five points in 7 seconds to cut the lead to 101-100 with 39 seconds remaining. Dragic hit a 3-pointer before Parsons got a steal and a layup.

The Pacers could have won it in regulation, but Collison missed two of four free throws in the last 20 seconds to give Houston a chance.

Granger gave the Pacers a 91-89 lead with 38 seconds left and Collison made one of two free throws a few seconds later to extend the lead.

Dragic got Houston within 92-91 with a jump shot with 16 seconds left before Collison again made one of two free throws. Dragic made a pair of free throws with 10 seconds left to tie it again.

Indiana's David West, who had 12 points, missed a shot at the buzzer to send it to overtime.

Pacers coach Frank Vogel took advantage of Granger being guarded by Parsons, who is a rookie.

"It was a good matchup," Vogel said. "He's obviously a tough guard for Chandler Parsons, who is a good defender, but obviously he's a little bit green and Danny was able to get going, especially in the overtime period."

Hibbert, who has been dealing with a sore lower back, started but spent several minutes early in the second quarter on a stationary bike with a wrap on his back. He finished with 15 points, nine rebounds and a season-high five blocks in about 35 minutes.

Houston's Marcus Camby continues to be effective despite playing with an injured left wrist. He had 10 points, nine rebounds, four steals and four blocked shots with the wrist heavily taped in his second straight start.

He was disappointed in Houston's effort early in overtime.

"I think they outhustled us, especially in the start of that overtime," he said. "They got like three or four possessions before they finally got the bucket. We had opportunities to win, we just didn't do a good job of closing out this game."

The Pacers went on a 10-0 run to erase a nine-point deficit and take an 81-80 lead with 5 1/2 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Granger hit consecutive 3-pointers to cap that run and Luis Scola missed three straight shots, including a layup, to help keep Houston scoreless in that span.

Parsons finished with 14 points and Scola had 13 for Houston.

Houston used a 7-0 run, with five points from Parsons, to extend a one-point lead to 65-57 with just under 4 minutes remaining in the third quarter. Camby blocked a layup by Hibbert and Collison had a turnover to keep the Pacers scoreless in that stretch.

Indiana cut the lead to 67-63 after outscoring Houston 6-2, with four points from Lou Amundson, in the next 2 1/2 minutes. But the Rockets ended the quarter with another run, this one 6-0, to take a 73-63 lead into the fourth quarter.

The Rockets trailed by nine early in the second quarter before using a 19-12 run to close the gap to 44-42 at halftime. Earl Boykins started that run with a 3-pointer and Samuel Dalembert had a pair of dunks in that span.

Indiana was up 18-9 early after a 3-pointer by Granger. Houston got going after that and outscored the Pacers 14-9 the rest of the quarter to cut the lead to 27-23 after one.

NOTES: Houston's Kyle Lowry has missed 13 games in a row because of a bacterial infection and teammate Kevin Martin has been out 11 straight with a sprained right shoulder. ... The Pacers are 11-5 against Western Conference teams this season. ... Lee has scored in double figures in a season high-tying five straight games. ... Three of Houston's last four home games have gone to overtime.

Notebook: Pacers 104, Rockets 102

Posted Sunday April 1, 2012 10:56PM

By Matt Miller, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: The Indiana Pacers refused to let a poor third-quarter performance or a few slip-ups in the closing moments of regulation affect their confidence at all.

Danny Granger scored a game-high 32 points and grabbed seven rebounds, and Roy Hibbert added 15 points, nine boards and five blocks as the Pacers overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Houston Rockets 104-102 in overtime on Sunday at Toyota Center. With the victory, Indiana (31-21) improved to 11-5 this season against the Western Conference.

Goran Dragic led the Rockets (28-25) with 22 points, six assists and six rebounds, while Courtney Lee netted 20 points to go with four assists. Houston, which is 8-17 away from home this season, will begin a four-game road trip Monday sitting in sole possession of eighth place in the West.

QUOTABLE: "I was able to get going, and my shot was falling tonight. ... Early on, I could tell this was going to be a night where I would be getting a lot of plays run especially for me."
-- Granger

THE STAT: The Pacers were outrebounded offensively 18-9 in regulation, but they turned the tables on Houston in overtime with a 5-0 edge on the offensive glass.

TURNING POINT: After getting outscored 31-19 in the third quarter, Indiana responded by beating Houston 30-20 in the fourth to force overtime. The teams were deadlocked at 95 with three minutes remaining in the extra session when Pacers forward Paul George converted an "and-one" play and Granger drained a 3-pointer on back-to-back Indiana possessions, putting the Pacers ahead for good.

HOT: Lee spearheaded the Rockets' third-quarter surge with 10 points on 5-for-6 shooting, three assists and one steal.

NOT: The Rockets made only 36.4 percent (8-for-22) of their field-goal attempts in the fourth quarter, allowing the Pacers to easily erase a double-digit deficit.

QUOTABLE II: "We didn't have the amount of movement that we needed. We tried to shake free on some simple [sets]. They [The Pacers] really started to deny some things, but our execution wasn't as good as it needed to be with our ball movement."
-- Houston coach Kevin McHale on the Rockets' offensive struggles in the final period

BAD MOVE: Indiana guard Darren Collison missed two of four free-throw attempts in the final 20 seconds of the fourth quarter to give Houston a second life. The Pacers likely would have won in regulation if not for Collison's shaky shooting at the charity stripe.

QUOTABLE III: "For the last two years, he's been money down the stretch on the free-throw line. These are the first two misses he's had in crunch time since he's been a Pacer."
-- Indiana coach Frank Vogel on Collison's ability to make clutch free throws

NOTABLE: The Pacers improved to 25-4 when they grab more rebounds than their opponent. ... Indiana is now 8-1 when all five starters score at least 10 points. ... The Pacers improved to 19-4 when they score more fast-break points than their opponent. ... Houston dropped to 8-5 in games decided by four points or less. ... The Rockets are now 23-4 when leading after three quarters. ... Houston is 8-11 since the All-Star break. ... Three of the Rockets' last four home games have gone to overtime. Houston is 1-2 in those three contests. ... Dragic has netted at least 20 points in back-to-back games. ... Rockets center Marcus Camby collected a season-high four steals.

UP NEXT: For the Pacers, Tuesday vs. New York, Wednesday @ Washington, Friday vs. Oklahoma City. For the Rockets, Monday @ Chicago (NBA TV), Friday @ L.A. Lakers (NBA TV), Sunday @ Sacramento (NBA TV).

• Pacers: Fesenko, Foster
• Rockets: Smith, Thomas

• Pacers: --
• Rockets: --

• Lead Changes: 5
• Times Tied: 13

• Arena: Toyota Center, Houston, TX
• Officials: #24 Mike Callahan, #40 Leon Wood, #77 Karl Lane
• Attendance: 18197
• Duration: 2:35