Trail Blazers-Pacers Preview

By MATT BEARDMORE
Posted Dec 05 2012 1:04AM

The Portland Trail Blazers' bench has helped the team pick up its scoring - and get back into the win column - after a rough start to their longest trip of the season.

Ending that stretch with another strong effort could be asking a lot with the defensive-minded Indiana Pacers up next.

Portland looks to close out its seven-game trip with a third consecutive victory Wednesday night when Indiana returns home from its own successful road stretch.

The Blazers' reserves are averaging a league-low 14.8 points, and they totaled 57 as the team averaged 86.5 points on the first four games of its trip.

Portland's bench, though, is coming off its two best offensive games of the season. Two days after totaling 29 points in an 118-117 double-overtime victory over Cleveland, Luke Babbitt had nine of the bench's 31 points in Monday's 118-112 overtime win over Charlotte.

Babbitt made three 3-pointers, including a game-tying shot with 22 seconds left in the fourth period that capped Portland's rally from 18 down in that period.

"Luke was big," forward LaMarcus Aldridge said after the Blazers won two straight road games for the first time since seven consecutive victories spanning Feb. 5-March 8, 2011. "He played solid on defense and he was big for us. They were doubling the block so coach (Terry Stotts) wanted to put a shooter out there. You can't leave Luke out there open. He opened up the floor for us."

While the Pacers (9-9) should be aware of Babbitt setting up from beyond the arc, they should probably be more concerned about Nicolas Batum, Wesley Matthews and rookie Damian Lillard. They're a combined 39 for 113 from beyond the arc on the trip, and their 130 3s this season are more than 19 teams.

Indiana, though, is holding teams to 32.4 percent from long range, and it is among the league leaders in scoring defense (91.1 ppg) and field goal defense (40.6 percent). With Danny Granger likely out another two months with a left knee injury, the Pacers likely have to keep leaning on their defense since they're one of the lowest-scoring teams in the NBA with 90.3 points per game.

Paul George is coming off a season-best 34-point performance in Tuesday's 80-76 win over Chicago, but the Pacers' shooting percentage (36.3) was their worst in a victory since hitting 34.9 percent in an 81-76 win over Houston on Dec. 26, 2006.

Center Roy Hibbert posted his first double-double in four games on Tuesday with 10 points and 11 boards, but it was his block of Luol Deng in the final seconds of regulation that helped Indiana return home at .500 and complete a four-game road swing with three wins.

"That's my staple," said Hibbert, who has at least two blocks in each of the last 12 games. "If my offense isn't going, I always have to play defense."

That's going to be key against Aldridge, who is averaging 23.6 points and 9.4 rebounds since missing the Blazers' first game of the trip - a 98-85 loss to Brooklyn on Nov. 25 - with a stiff back.

Aldridge led the Blazers with 17 points in their last game versus Indiana, a 92-75 road loss on March 13. Portland was held to a season-low 20 field goals in that contest, and its five assists were an NBA low in 2011-12.

Indiana has won two straight in this series after dropping the previous five.

George scores 22 to lead Pacers over Blazers 99-92

By CLIFF BRUNT
Posted Dec 06 2012 12:04AM

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) A few different versions of Paul George have been showing up lately for the Indiana Pacers. The dominant one made an appearance Wednesday night against Portland.

George scored 22 points to help Indiana beat the Trail Blazers 99-92 on Wednesday night.

George, Indiana's No. 2 scorer this season, has been inconsistent. He scored four points at Sacramento and went scoreless at Golden State before exploding for 34 points at Chicago on Tuesday night.

He followed that by scoring 14 of his 22 points in the second half against the Trail Blazers.

The question remains whether the talented 22-year-old is just teasing the Pacers with the back-to-back strong efforts.

"You just watch him and some of the shots that he's making and you think, `Boy, if he could ever stabilize and do this on a consistent basis,"' Indiana coach Frank Vogel said.

George doesn't worry about the consistency issue as much as Vogel does.

"I don't look at it like that anymore," George said. "I just come out and play. I feel like I'm preparing myself well enough to just go out and play, take the shots that are there and be confident in those shots."

George Hill added 18 points and David West had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Pacers (10-9) , who have won four of five and moved above .500 for the first time since a 2-1 start. Indiana, the league leader in scoring defense, held the Blazers to 43 percent shooting.

"We guarded," Vogel said. "We try to take pride in being the best defensive team in the NBA and we got after it. By getting stops we were able to get out and break a little bit and get some easy baskets."

Damian Lillard led Portland (8-11) with 23 points. Though the Pacers were strong defensively overall, they had no answer for the rookie, who constantly blew past his defenders.

"He was the focal point of our defense tonight," Vogel said. "We knew we had to contain Lillard and he still got off on us. He had a great night and he's a special talent and he has a bright future ahead of him."

Wesley Matthews scored 19, LaMarcus Aldridge had 18 points and 10 rebounds, and J.J. Hickson had 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Trail Blazers.

Portland was solid in the first half then played poorly in the third quarter before finishing strong.

"We've been playing up and down, kind of going through spurts," Aldridge said. "If I knew why we were playing like that, I could fix it."

Indiana outscored Portland 31-14 in the third quarter to take control. The Trail Blazers made a push in the fourth but could get no closer than four.

"It seemed like we were on our heels and weren't aggressive," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. "They were much more aggressive."

Hickson's tip-in at the buzzer gave the Blazers a 50-48 lead at halftime. Lillard had 14 points at the break for Portland.

Indiana opened the second half on a 6-0 run to take a 54-50 lead.

A 3-pointer and a pair of free throws by George gave the Pacers a 67-60 edge, and Ian Mahinmi's basket in close pushed Indiana's lead to nine and forced Portland to call a timeout.

A fast-break layup by George out of the break bumped Indiana's lead to double digits, and a free throw by D.J. Augustin closed out the 10-0 run. During that three-minute stretch, the Trail Blazers went 0-for-3 from the field and committed three turnovers.

West's putback in the final seconds of the third quarter gave Indiana a 79-64 lead entering the fourth. Indiana held Portland to 7-for-19 shooting in the third. George, who had eight points in the first half, scored nine in the quarter.

George picked up where he left off, draining a 3-pointer from the corner in the opening minute of the fourth to give the Pacers an 18-point lead.

Portland battled back in the early minutes of the fourth. Matthews hit two free throws to trim Indiana's lead to 85-79 and Lillard added a layup to make it 85-81.

But Indiana regrouped. A drive by George and a last-second dish for a dunk by Hill gave Indiana a 93-86 lead with just over four minutes remaining.

Portland had a chance to cut Indiana's lead to three, but Hibbert blocked Hickson's shot and pulled in the rebound with 50 seconds to play.

"It was a nice effort at the end, but we just can't put ourselves in those positions," Stotts said.

The Pacers, who struggled out of the gate, are starting to look like the team that pushed Miami in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs last season.

"A lot of things are starting to come together," George said. "We're starting to knock down shots, we're starting to see the open man. We're starting to play the style that we played last year."

Notes: Pacers F Danny Granger remains out with left patellar tendinosis. ... Hibbert entered the game second in the league with 3.06 blocks per contest. He had three more on Wednesday. ... West was issued a technical foul in the second quarter. ... Lillard was named Western Conference rookie of the month on Wednesday. ... Mahinmi scored a season-high 12 points to help Indiana's reserves outscore Portland's 31-13. ... Portland fell to 2-5 on its road trip.

Notebook: Pacers 99, Blazers 92

Conrad Brunner, for NBA.com
Posted Wed Dec 05, 2012 10:25 PM - Updated Wed Dec 05, 2012 10:25 PM

THE FACTS: The question was not whether Paul George could do it, but whether he could do it again. The first two times he breached the 30-point mark in his career, George fell immediately into scoring funks. Not this time. After scoring 34 to lead Indiana over Chicago Tuesday night, the third-year wing followed up with 22 points, eight rebounds and five assists as the Pacers held off Portland 99-92 Wednesday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The player most expected to pick up the scoring slack in Danny Granger's absence is showing signs of stepping into that role, playing much more aggressively in terms of attacking the basket rather than settling for jump shots and making plays on the move. Rookie standout Damian Lillard scored 23 with six assists to lead the Blazers, who wrapped up a seven-game road trip.

QUOTABLE: "It's exciting is what it is. You see some of the shots he's making and you think if he could ever stabilize and do that on a consistent basis, with the way he's playing defense, you've got a special player."
-- Indiana Coach Frank Vogel on George.

THE STAT: On back-to-back nights, George totaled 56 points, 17 rebounds, seven assists and four steals, making 21 of 40 shots (.525), including 5 of 12 (.417) from the 3-point line. The first time George scored 30, last season in Dallas, he want nearly three weeks before reaching 20. When he went for 37 against New Orleans on Nov. 21, he totaled 31 in his next four games.

TURNING POINT: George took over in the Pacers' decisive run, scoring 10 points in a 20-4 burst bridging the third and fourth periods that pushed Indiana's lead to 82-64. Portland countered with a 17-4 run with Wesley Matthews scoring 11 but got no closer than four.

QUOTABLE II: "I'm not doing anything different. I'm going to continue to let the game come to me and hopefully be productive. It's kicking in the last couple of nights and I just hope I can continue this."
-- George

HOT: David West hit 8 of 11 shots, scoring 16 points and adding 10 rebounds for his sixth double-double for Indiana. Pacers reserve center Ian Mahinmi hit all six of his shots to score 12. Lillard hit 9 of 15 for Portland, while J.J. Hickson shot 7 of 12.

NOT: Roy Hibbert continues to struggle with his shot, going 3-of-13 from the field as his field goal percentage dropped to .383 for the season. LaMarcus Aldridge shot 5 of 14 but did manage an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double.

ROOKIE WATCH: Lillard continued the remarkable start to his first season, playing with a composure and confidence belying his youth. To lead a team in scoring while providing six assists without a turnover is a remarkable performance for a rookie point guard. Meyers Leonard had a modest outing with four points and a rebound in 11 and 1/2 minutes.

NOTABLE: Indiana had two reserves score in double figures for the first time since Nov. 14 and third time this season as Mahinmi (12) and Tyler Hansbrough (10) both had solid outings. ... Hibbert blocked three shots to extend his streak of games with at least two to 13. ... George led the Pacers in assists for the third time in four games. ... Portland's woeful bench produced just 13 points. ...Concluding a seven-game road trip with a 2-5 record, the Blazers have six in a row at home. ... The Pacers, who played 12 of their first 18 on the road, opened a stretch of four of five at home. ... Indiana guard Lance Stephenson did not finish the game after sustaining an undisclosed leg injury in the first half.

UP NEXT: For the Pacers, Friday vs. Denver, Sunday at Oklahoma City, Wednesday vs. Cleveland. For the Blazers, Saturday vs. Sacramento, Monday vs. Toronto, Thursday vs. San Antonio

• Trail Blazers: Claver, Williams
• Pacers: Granger, Plumlee

• Trail Blazers: --
• Pacers: West

• Lead Changes: 4
• Times Tied: 7

• Arena: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
• Officials: #8 Marc Davis, #64 Sir Allen Conner, #33 Sean Corbin
• Attendance: 11569
• Duration: 2:09