Player of the GameScored 32 points on 11-of-21 shooting, adding seven rebounds, three steals and two assists while playing strong defense against Kevin Durant, who was held to 16 points. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Hustle BoardPacers 58, Thunder 54 Second-chance points: Pacers 20, Thunder 16 Fast-break points: Pacers 16, Thunder 13 Points off turnovers: Pacers 26, Thunder 16 Starters scoring: Pacers 100, Thunder 52 Bench scoring: Thunder 49, Pacers 21 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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END RESULT
March madness isn't limited to the college basketball world.Playing at their highest level since the opening weeks of the season, the Pacers thoroughly dominated a talented, red-hot Oklahoma City team Sunday, leading by as many as 31 points before settling for a 121-101 decision before 14,701 at Conseco Fieldhouse.
The Thunder had won 18 of 22 coming in and is in a battle for homecourt advantage in the first round of the Western Conference playoff bracket but never got into the game against the Pacers, who held Kevin Durant to 16 points – half his career average against the Pacers – on 4-of-16 shooting while Danny Granger went for 32 as all five starters scored in double figures.
IMPACT
The Pacers won their fifth straight at home, a season best, improving to 17-16 at CFH. They improved their overall record to 24-46, tied with Philadelphia for 11th in the Eastern Conference. Indiana also won for the first time in six Sunday games; the Pacers had dropped the first five by an average of 22.4 points. The Thunder dropped to 42-26 overall, 20-15 on the road.QUOTEWORTHY
KEY MOMENTS
Again establishing Roy Hibbert right away, the Pacers jumped out to an 18-6 lead as the center scored seven quick points against an undersized Thunder front line. Oklahoma City rallied with a 16-4 run to tie it at 22-all but consecutive 3-pointers from Earl Watson started the Pacers on a 15-3 burst that pushed the lead to 37-25 early in the second.The Thunder closed to 42-37 but Murphy and Brandon Rush hit 3-pointers to spark a 12-2 run that pushed the lead to 54-39 and the Pacers led by double digits, 59-48, at the break as Durant was 1-of-7 with five turnovers in the first half.
Murphy quickly helped put to rest any thoughts of an Oklahoma City comeback, scoring nine points in a 13-0 run early in the third quarter as the Pacers moved ahead 74-53 and the Thunder were no closer than 15 the rest of the way.
BY THE NUMBERS
Granger added seven rebounds and three steals to his 32-point outing, and he was 11-of-21 from the field. Murphy had 22 points on 7-of-11 shooting and 13 boards for his 31st double-double. Murphy hit 4-of-7 from the 3-point line for the third game in a row. Hibbert scored 20 on 8-of-13 shooting, adding eight rebounds and three assists. Rush scored 15 on 6-of-10 shooting and Earl Watson dominated the point guard matchup with former protégé Russell Westbrook, scoring 11 points with eight assists. Westbrook, Oklahoma City's second-leading scorer, was shut out. The Pacers shot .517 overall and were 10-of-29 from the 3-point line. They also had 29 assists against just 14 turnovers.Jeff Green led the Thunder with 20 points, adding six rebounds. Rookie Eric Maynor had a season-high 15 points and tied his high with 11 assists. Serge Ibaka had 10 points and 12 rebounds. The Thunder shot .432 and were 4-of-16 from the 3-point line.














