| ||
 |
vs. |  |
 Tinsley |
Point Guard |
 Alston |
 Granger |
Shooting Guard |
 McGrady |
 Dunleavy |
Small Forward |
 Battier |
 Murphy |
Power Forward |
 Scola |
 Foster |
Center |  Yao |
 O'Brien |
Coach |  Adelman |
Yao next challenge for struggling defense
By Conrad Brunner | Jan. 31, 2008
Friday, 7 p.m. Conseco Fieldhouse TV: FSN-Indiana Radio: WFNI 1070-AM |
After yielding 24 points and 10 rebounds to Detroit's Rasheed Wallace in a 110-104 loss to the Pistons Tuesday, the Pacers face Houston's Yao Ming and Orlando's Dwight Howard in back-to-back games beginning Friday with the Rockets in Conseco Fieldhouse. Then comes a matchup with San Antonio and Tim Duncan on Tuesday.
"Obviously, coming off the road and facing these teams at home is tough on us," said Jeff Foster. "It's going to show what kind of team we are. We battled, but against Detroit we made some mistakes that cost us the game.
"Hopefully we can play with that same sense of urgency and that same intensity this weekend in these two home games and come out with two wins. … Our defense is definitely a concern and a major factor why we're not winning games. We have lots of issues with defense."
The Pacers (19-27) have lost four in a row and 14 of 18 but anticipate the return of point guard Jamaal Tinsley, who missed the last three games and nine of 16 with a sore left knee.
"It's just good to be back out there on the court," Tinsley said. "The sharp pain's not there anymore so I think I'm able to get out there and play now."
After employing a small lineup for nine games in a row (the Pacers went 3-6), Coach Jim O'Brien returned to a big lineup against the Pistons, pairing Foster and Troy Murphy in the frontcourt. He wasn't tipping his hand about his plans for dealing with Yao, saying after practice Thursday he hadn't decided.
"I was watching video before practice and they were playing San Antonio and San Antonio was guarding him with two men and he still scored," O'Brien said. "So he's a pretty big load and they've surrounded him with guys that can shoot the three. We had not a little bit of difficulty guarding Rasheed Wallace; Yao is probably the premier low-post presence so we're going to have to figure something out before 7 o'clock (Friday) night to make sure he doesn't single-handedly beat us."
The Rockets (25-20) have won five of six and 10 of 13. Tracy McGrady missed Tuesday's 111-107 victory over the Warriors due to illness but returned to practice Wednesday and is expected to play.
KEY TO THE GAME
It could well be O'Brien's choice of lineups. It will be tempting to use a big lineup in an effort to have more bulk on the floor to contend with Yao Ming but smaller teams have actually given the 7-6 center plenty of problems. In five games against Phoenix and Golden State, the most prominent practitioners of small-ball in the league, Yao has had two monster outings (36 points and 19 rebounds against the Warriors and 31 and 13 against the Suns) but been largely ineffective in the other three, averaging 12.7 points on 12-of-37 (.324) shooting. The Rockets won the two monster games and lost the others.
TRENDS
The Pacers have scored fewer than 100 points in their last 11 meetings with the Rockets, averaging 83.9. … The defense has yielded an average of 109.4 points in the last 12 games, with all but one opponent (Miami with 98) reaching 100. … Shawne Williams has averaged 4.0 points on 6-of-22 (.273) shooting in the last four games. … Kareem Rush has shot 12-of-26 (.462) from the 3-point line but 6-of-24 (.250) inside the arc in the last four. … The Pacers are 6-7 without Jermaine O'Neal. … Danny Granger has shot 10-of-30 (.333) in the last two. … Jeff Foster has averaged 12.0 points and 10.0 rebounds while shooting 13-of-18 (.722) from the field in his last three starts. … Mike Dunleavy has averaged 24.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists and .575 shooting in the last three. … Ike Diogu has made two appearances totaling 16 minutes in the last 10 games. … Marquis Daniels has totaled 13 points on 6-of-24 (.250) shooting in the last five.
SERIES
This is the first meeting this season. The teams have split the last five seasons. Houston leads 44-26 overall and 18-17 in Indianapolis.
INJURIES
Pacers - G Jamaal Tinsley (sore L knee) is probable; C Jermaine O'Neal (bone bruise, L knee) is out.
Rockets - G Steve Francis (quadriceps tendinitis) is out.
