Game Rewind: Pacers 101, Nuggets 102

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Game Rewind: IND 101, DEN 102

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For the second game in a row, the Pacers trailed by double-digits but came back to tie the game, only to lose with a sour taste in their mouth. On an inbounds play with 0.5 seconds left, Paul George was called for a controversial foul on the Denver Nuggets’ inbounds throw, which sent Andre Iguodala to the free throw line. He knocked down his first attempt and intentionally missed the second for the one-point edge and their fourth-consecutive victory, 102-101.

In Denver to wrap up a four-game stretch on the road, the Pacers (26-19) hoped to end a couple of losing streaks, both on the road and to the Denver Nuggets (28-18). The Pepsi Center has been a difficult venue all year for Denver’s opponents, which again was the case tonight.

Lance Stephenson was in a slump over the last week, including a scoreless night in Utah on Saturday, but he gave the Pacers a couple of boosts in this one. First, he sparked a 9-0 run that put them ahead by eight. Paul George ended the first quarter with a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Pacers a 29-24 advantage.

Denver worked their way back in the game by controlling the tempo and efficiently scoring in transition. They used an 11-2 run late in the first half to re-gain the lead for good. During that stretch, an upset David West earned a technical foul moments after picking up his third personal foul. Stephenson again provided a pick-me-up when the Pacers needed him. He scored their final six points of the half but they trailed the Nuggets by two, 55-53.

Indiana continued to get beat in transition and in the paint, a story all night. On one particular series, Nuggets center Kosta Koufos swatted back-to-back shots and each time, the Pacers were beat in transition and gave up easy points.

The Pacers went down as many as 14, 96-82 with 6:43 remaining and Frank Vogel called a timeout. They appeared frustrated, both with their play and the way the game was officiated. They contained themselves and regrouped by outscoring the Nuggets 17-3 to tie the game at 99 with less than two minutes to play.

With 59 seconds remaining, Danilo Gallinari was fouled and made both his free throws and then West tied the game with his rebound and put-back of a George Hill miss. Paul George played excellent defense on Andre Iguodala, stuffing his mid-range jumper from the left corner, giving the Pacers the ball with 17.8 seconds left. From the beginning, the play got off to a bad start, inbounding the ball Roy Hibbert. George then received it and ran much of the time of before beginning his move. When he did, he lost it to Iguodala, who immediately called timeout with 0.5 seconds on the clock.

The Nuggets inbounded the ball in their front court, and lobbed it up to Iguodala. He fell back while both he and George went up for the ball and the officials called a foul on George. That sent Iguodala to the line, needing only one for the win. He made the first try and purposely missed the second, which put the Nuggets in front for a dramatic and debatable 102-101 win.

Indiana lost their last three games of a four-game road trip—two in late situations—but they’ll now return home for 13 of their next 16 games.

Paul George paced the Pacers with 23 points (on 9-of-17 shooting) and 10 rebounds. David West chipped in 17. Rookie Orlando Johnson scored eight points in 10 minutes of work.

After failing to score last game, Lance Stephenson had the most complete game of his career. He finished with a season-high 20 points (two shy of his career-high), eight rebounds and four assists.

Danilo Gallinari led all scorers with 27 points, six coming from the foul line, including two critical makes with 59 seconds remaining. Ty Lawson finished with 18 points and seven assists, and Andre Iguodala recorded a double-double (13 points, 10 rebounds). Timofey Mozgov scored a season-high 10 points in the absence of McGee and Chandler.

For the third-consecutive game, the Pacers allow at least 50 points in the paint. The Nuggets are the top-scoring team in the paint and they scored 50 points in the lane tonight.

The Pacers have given up 100+ points in their last three games, all losses, after allowing opponents in triple-digits just six times in their first 42 games.

The Nuggets took advantage of the Pacers in transition, scoring 21 fastbreak points.

“I am not going to make any comments on the play.” – Frank Vogel on the last play

“You just don’t expect the whistle to be blown in that situation. They (Nuggets) basically only have one option and that was the option. You don’t expect it but stranger things have happened.” – David West on the last play

“I thought we did a good job fighting back. We were right there in the game, we had opportunities, we just didn't get a chance to decide it.” – David West on the loss

“I thought (Andre Iguodala) got fouled. I didn’t think it was a bad call. In a perfect scenario, he would have come wide open; he came partially open. He threw the ball; Andre (Miller) makes good decisions and he put the ball in a place where I thought he got fouled.” – Nuggets coach George Karl on the final play

The Nuggets failed to make a field goal in the final 5:45, missing their last seven attempts. They gave up 13-straight points but made three key free throws in the final minute to win.

The Pacers return home on Wednesday, January 30 to take on the Detroit Pistons. Good seats are still available and features College Night presented by the Indiana National Guard. Find Tickets »

2013-14 Season Tickets » Playoff Priority, Biggest Games, Best Pricing