97
104
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Friday, November 23 at 8:00 PM EST at Bankers Life Fieldhouse
Game Rewind: IND 97, SAS 104
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Game Rewind
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The Pacers (6-8) had many reasons to feel good about their play Friday night against the Spurs, but how they finished wasn't one of them. Their 17-point third quarter lead evaporated as the Pacers went ice-cold from the field, missing their final 14 shots to end the game. The Spurs improved to 10-3 after a gritty 104-97 road win.
The Spurs started out as hot as the Pacers finished cold. For Tony Parker, it took almost 11 minutes and eight shots before he finally missed. After going down 22-14, the Pacers outscored the Spurs 11-6 to close the quarter and come within three, 28-25.
Tyler Hansbrough (12 rebounds) and D.J. Augustin (eight assists) gave the Pacers a big lift in less than 18 minutes of work off the bench and helped fuel a second quarter spurt where the Pacers took their first lead, 33-32. Four different bench players scored in succession during a 9-0 run where the Pacers went up 39-32. Paul George connected on a three just before the half ended to go ahead 52-48.
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The ball movement and offensive flow Coach Vogel has been seeking was on display for much of the night, but it was most apparent in the first six minutes of the third. The Pacers opened the second half on an 18-5 run to go up 17, their biggest lead of the game. It was far from over, though, and the experienced Spurs returned the favor with a 16-5 run. Parker made a layup to bring the Spurs within four entering the fourth.
When the Pacers left the door open, the Spurs, in typical fashion, hung around, took advantage of missed shots and closed the game out. The Pacers were ahead 95-91 with 5:30 to play, but would miss their final 14 shots and fall to the Spurs for the 11th straight time, 104-97.
Inside the Numbers
With 22 points, David West led the Pacers in scoring for the sixth time this season. Roy Hibbert had a double-double (10 points and 11 rebounds) and Paul George added 15.
D.J. Augustin played his best game as a member of the Pacers. He finished with eight points and eight rebounds in less than 15 minutes of action.
Tyler Hansbrough grabbed a season-high 12 rebounds, one shy of his career-best.
Tony Parker scored a game-high 33 points and dished out 10 assists. Beginning the game 8-for-8 with five assists, he had a hand in the Spurs' first 26 points.
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Tim Duncan recorded his eighth double-double on the season: 22 points and a season-high 17 rebounds
The Spurs missed their first 12 3-point attempts and were 2-of-17 for the game.
Quoteworthy
"Games are won and lost in the fourth quarter. They clearly outplayed us in the fourth and that was the difference ... I'll take the looks we got. That's the game of basketball. Sometimes you get good looks and the ball doesn't fall for you." – Frank Vogel
"They made a run in the third quarter to close it ... they picked up their pressure, and came in with (Manu) Ginobili off the bench, which is a stretch of theirs. He got them back in the game and then (Tony) Parker closed it." – Frank Vogel
"We played well. We knew coming in this was going to be a tough game. The Spurs are a veteran group. They have experience. The only thing is, they just knew how to finish the game off…We battled a tough team and were up by 17 at one point. We just have to hang on to that." – Paul George
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"It was like there was a lid on the basket in the final six minutes. It was real difficult for us to make a shot. We got good looks – we were right at the basket for some. We struggled to finish tonight." – Paul George
"Right now, we haven't played our best basketball so we have to be optimistic about that and know we can get better. But first, we have to reach out and look ourselves in the mirror, hold ourselves accountable and want to change." – George Hill
"It's still a work in progress. That's what we expect out of [the second unit]. That second group has a lot of great players and the more help they can give us, the better off we're going to be. The way they played today was a great effort to come off the bench and really give us a hand." – George Hill on the bench
"We showed no panic. It was a long 48 minutes but we kept playing. It was definitely a mental game tonight. They made us work hard for every shot." – Spurs guard Tony Parker
Stat of the Game
The Pacers failed to make a shot in the final 5:30. They missed their last 14 field goal attempts and were outscored 13-2.
Noteworthy
- The Spurs have won the last 11 meetings and five straight at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
- Lance Stephenson put an impressive move on Tony Parker midway through the third, worthy of SportsCenter. He made the layup and the Spurs then called timeout.
- David West and Lance Stephenson each received technical fouls in the third quarter.
- The Pacers wore their alternate gold uniforms.
Up Next
The Pacers will have a couple days of practice this weekend before heading out west Monday for a weeklong road trip that begins in Los Angeles and ends in Chicago. Next up, the Pacers face the L.A. Lakers on Tuesday at 10:30 PM EST.
Back at home: Wednesday, Dec. 5th vs. Portland at 7 PM EST. Buy Tickets »
