INDIANAPOLIS – It’s been over three weeks since the New Orleans Pelicans won or lost more than two games in a row, a sign of a team that’s battled inconsistency in its effort to move up the Western Conference ladder. The good game-bad game run the Pelicans have been on lately continued Tuesday, when they fell to a sub-.500 Eastern Conference team, two days after winning in Oklahoma City, one of the league’s toughest venues. With a chance to enter the Christmas mini-break riding some momentum, New Orleans (14-14) instead dropped back to the break-even mark.
Indiana (10-19) built an 82-70 lead midway through the fourth quarter, but New Orleans finally began clicking offensively, cutting its deficit to 87-82 prior to a C.J. Watson dagger two-point perimeter jumper. The Pelicans couldn’t draw any closer in the final minutes, as the Pacers sealed their second straight victory. It was New Orleans’ sixth consecutive defeat vs. Indiana, which has not lost to the Pelicans during the Anthony Davis era.
New Orleans was unable to overcome a sluggish first half, when the Pelicans shot just 34.8 percent from the field and went 3-for-13 from three-point range. Despite those numbers, New Orleans only trailed 44-40 at intermission. Indiana methodically took control in the second half, outscoring its guests 26-21 in the third quarter to lead 70-61.
Overall, the Pelicans finished a sliver below 40 percent from the field and were even less accurate from long range in the second half, going 1-for-7 (4-for-20 for the game). In a sign of decreased ball movement, they only had 15 assists on 33 baskets.
“We had our opportunities,” Pelicans fifth-year coach Monty Williams said. “We shot 39 percent, 20 from three. We had some open looks from the three-point line, we just didn’t make them. We had 33 assists the other night (at Oklahoma City). Tonight we had 15. That’s part of our DNA right now, understanding how to win the game. There were some times when we didn’t share the ball the way we needed to, especially in transition.”
Davis led New Orleans with 21 points, but he didn’t make his usual imprint on the game, shooting 8-for-18 from the field. Indiana’s interior defense was formidable, including blocking 12 shots, with seven of those produced by 7-foot-3 center Roy Hibbert. Former New Orleans standout David West spearheaded a balanced Indiana performance by totaling 13 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
“They’re a physical team. They pushed us around,” Davis said of a Pacers club trying to claw back into the top eight of the Eastern Conference standings.
Williams: “We didn’t respond to the physicality. They put their hands on us tonight. We spent too much time worrying about the calls, instead of playing the game.”
Tuesday’s defeat marked the first time since Nov. 25 vs. Sacramento that New Orleans lost to an opponent that is currently below .500. During what’s been an extremely tough December schedule, the Pelicans had played almost exclusively against high-caliber foes. Since Dec. 2, New Orleans has beaten Oklahoma City (twice), Cleveland and Houston.
“We have to learn how to be consistent, especially coming off a big win in OKC,” Davis said. “It’s definitely frustrating. We went 1-1 (on the road trip), but this easily could’ve been a 2-0 trip. We didn’t come out tonight like we were supposed to. We can’t afford to do that if we’re going to beat a good team.”
“We have a great game and play incredibly well, and then we have a game that’s tough like this,” said Ryan Anderson, who had perhaps his most frustrating night of the season, shooting 1-for-8 and fouling out. “We have to figure out how to play 48 minutes consistently and play both ends consistently. One night we’ll be great on defense, the next we’ll be great offensively. When we can bring that all together, we can be a really great team. We just have to be patient, work and continue to grow.”