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Game Rewind: Pacers 112, Pistons 104

Game Recap

Although Paul George may have been the hottest player on the floor on Saturday night at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, some early foul trouble for PG kept him on the bench for much of the second half against the Detroit Pistons.

What had once been a 20-point lead in the third quarter was narrowed down to just a six point advantage to start to fourth quarter, but Indiana responded to the closing of the gap in a big way, starting off the final frame on a 10-3 run, as the Pacers went on to win 112-104.

"We just made plays to win the game," Paul George said. "It’s part of the league. Teams come back, teams make runs. That’s not an excuse for them coming back but it’s the nature of the game. I thought we did a great job of creating that cushion and withstanding that late rally back and having a final push of our own."

The win was critical for the Pacers on many levels. First most, Indiana has sealed the season series against the division-rival Pistons, beating them 3-1 in the 2015-16 season. Should a tie-breaker scenario occur, as it did last season with the Nets, the Pacers will have the edge over Detroit.

Secondly, it moves the Pacers to 2-0 with the starting lineup of Ian Mahinmi, Myles Turner, Paul George, George Hill, and Monta Ellis. The lineup was put on hold while Mahinmi recovered from a sore lower back, but looked to be a potent group in the early going, starting the game off on a 13-4 run.

In the first half, the Pacers led the Pistons 62-48 at the break behind 17 points from George, who drilled 6-of-7 shots from the field.

"Coach has been telling us we’re a smashmouth basketball team," Myles Turner said. "I feel like we set the tone early."

Indiana's offense in the first half was scorching, finishing the first two quarters having shot 68 percent from the field.

However, despite trailing the Pacers by as much as 20 in the third quarter, the Pistons broke off a 13-2 run that tightened the mood at the Fieldhouse, as Indiana entered the fourth quarter leading by just six points.

Although Indiana temporarily fended off the Pistons, Detroit battled back once more, cutting the deficit to five with six minutes remaining in the contest.

At 97-92, George — who finished the night with 30 points — was able to draw contact while shooting a 3-pointer, sending him to the line where he pushed Indiana's lead to eight.

The Pistons weren't quite done yet, cutting their deficit to five with just over two minutes remaining in the contest on a Marcus Morris drive to the basket.

On the other end, Jordan Hill was whistled for the loose ball foul, sending Andre Drummond to the free throw line, where he made 1-of-2 to bring Detroit within four.

But on pick-and-roll situation with 1:39 remaining, George found a diving Jordan Hill with a deft bounce pass that Hill turned into a thundering slam to bring the packed house at The Fieldhouse to its feet and extend Indiana's lead to six.

After a smooth jumper from Ellis gave the Pacers a cushion, George Hill drained a high-arcing shot from the baseline to give Indiana an eight-point lead with 20 seconds left, effectively ending the comeback hopes of the Pistons as the Pacers went on to wrap up the Saturday night victory.

Inside the Numbers

For the sixth time in their last seven games, the Pacers outrebounded their opponent. On Saturday, it was by a margin of +4.

The Pacers and Pistons got the to free-throw line 29 and 31 times, respectively, but the Pacers nailed 24-of-29 from the stripe, while the Pistons hit just 16-of-31. Andre Drummond alone was 2-of-8.

Paul George was one free-throw shy of his career-high of 15. PG sunk 14-of-15 from the stripe.

The Pacers held Pistons starter Ersan Ilyasova to 1-of-8 shooting with no rebounds, steals, or assists in 18 minutes of play.

You Can Quote Me On That

"It was a great effort. I praised our guys for playing a passionate game last night and told them if we came back with that level of intensity, I would like our chances." -Pacers head coach Frank Vogel

"A little bit in the second half, we defended. I thought we played hard for a quarter and a half, two quarters in Boston. I thought we played hard for two quarters against New York and I thought we played hard for a quarter and a half tonight. That's not going to get it done." -Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy

"It was a collaborative effort. We really all came in and sunk down on him, got him off the glass. Any time he tried to make close moves we were digging and trying to force him to pass it out." -Myles Turner on boxing out Andre Drummond

Stat of the Night

Despite it being the second night of a back-to-back, the Pacers were able to pull out the victory over Detroit. Prior to Saturday night's game, the Pacers were 2-7 on the second leg of back-to-backs.

Noteworthy

  • The Pacers won their season series with the Pistons 3-1
  • Indiana is now 2-0 with Myles Turner and Ian Mahinmi starting together, and 3-2 since moving Turner into the starting lineup
  • The Pacers did not trail at any point in the game

Up Next

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Home Court Gift Shop Game Night Special

Select Mini Basketball - $10. Game Night Specials can be purchased in the Home Court Gift Shop or any of our souvenir stands located on all levels of Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The special is also available online at PacersGear.com until midnight.