Pooh
03-20-2004, 08:00 AM
From Pacers.com
After an inspiring first half, the Pacers fell asleep in the second. As a result, Sacramento wiped out a 17-point deficit and pulled out a 94-92 victory on Mike Bibby's fallaway jumper with 1.2 seconds remaining before the 10th sellout crowd of the season (18,345) in Conseco Fieldhouse on Friday night.
The Pacers dominated the first half, building leads of as much as 17 points (41-24) and keeping a double-digit cushion on the Kings throughout the second quarter. O'Neal got things started with nine quick points as the Pacers jumped out to a 19-8 lead. Then Jonathan Bender took over. The Kings had crept to a 21-17 deficit on a Peja Stojakovic 3-pointer but Bender scored the Pacers' next 11 points before Austin Croshere ended the period with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer that made it 35-22. Bender scored the Pacers' first four points of the second quarter -- giving him 15 points in six minutes of playing time. The lead was 56-40 late in the half before the Kings made a mini-run of 7-2 to cut the deficit to 58-47 heading into the second half. The Pacers outscored the Kings 28-12 on points in the paint and 14-2 on fast-break points in the half.
The Kings came out cold to start the second half, missing their first five shots, giving the Pacers a chance to put the game away early. But Indiana's offense was flat-footed and, as a result, the lead did not grow. It was 66-55 when the Kings began a 16-6 run that put the home team on its heels. Bibby scored 10 in the period and six in the run that closed the gap to 72-71 heading into the fourth. Peja Stojakovic gave the Kings their first lead of the game to start the fourth quarter, and the teams then had five more lead changes and six ties before the dramatic finish.
The Pacers may well have lost the game in the third quarter, but they still had a chance to win late. Jamaal TInsley made a pair of free throws to tie it at 88 with 57 seconds left, but Doug Christie hit a corner 3-pointer to give the Kings a 90-88 lead with 47 seconds remaining. O'Neal then muscled in a tough basket through a low-post double-team to tie it again. Chris Webber, 6 of 10 from the line to that point, then made a pair of free throws with 32 seconds, and O'Neal responded with two of his own with 24 seconds to go. But the defense couldn't come up with the critical stop as Bibby used a Brad Miller screen to create just enough space between himself and Tinsley to hit a fallaway 19-footer with 1.2 seconds left.
The Pacers lost their first season series, and it was a potentially big one as the Kings hold the tie-breaker in the race for the best record in the NBA. At 50-18, the Pacers have a half-game lead over the Kings (50-19), who snapped a two-game losing streak while winning their fourth in a row in the series. Sacramento also clinched a playoff berth while making Rick Adelman the winningest coach (296-151) in franchise history.
The Pacers shot .400 overall but just .256 in the second half, when they totaled just 34 points after scoring 35 in the first quarter. O'Neal's 23 points led the way, and he added seven rebounds and three blocks. Bender scored 15 points in 16 minutes off the bench, hitting 6 of 7 shots before falling prey to a shoulder injury that limited his effectiveness in the second half. Croshere scored 11 in 13 minutes. Al Harrington, filling in as the starting small forward, never got untracked and finished with 10 points and eight rebounds. Jeff Foster had a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Starting guards Reggie Miller and Tinsley combined to score 12 points on 4 of 20 shooting, including 0 of 11 from the 3-point line.
The 20th back-to-back set of the season wraps up in Memphis, a locale where the Pacers have yet to win in two previous trips. But those are the only two losses in the series, as the Pacers are 14-2 overall against the Grizzlies. That includes a 94-86 victory on Dec. 29 in Conseco Fieldhouse as Jermaine O'Neal and Ron Artest combined for 38 points. Memphis has lost two of three but with a 42-26 overall record is firmly entrenched in position for the franchise's first playoff berth.
After an inspiring first half, the Pacers fell asleep in the second. As a result, Sacramento wiped out a 17-point deficit and pulled out a 94-92 victory on Mike Bibby's fallaway jumper with 1.2 seconds remaining before the 10th sellout crowd of the season (18,345) in Conseco Fieldhouse on Friday night.
The Pacers dominated the first half, building leads of as much as 17 points (41-24) and keeping a double-digit cushion on the Kings throughout the second quarter. O'Neal got things started with nine quick points as the Pacers jumped out to a 19-8 lead. Then Jonathan Bender took over. The Kings had crept to a 21-17 deficit on a Peja Stojakovic 3-pointer but Bender scored the Pacers' next 11 points before Austin Croshere ended the period with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer that made it 35-22. Bender scored the Pacers' first four points of the second quarter -- giving him 15 points in six minutes of playing time. The lead was 56-40 late in the half before the Kings made a mini-run of 7-2 to cut the deficit to 58-47 heading into the second half. The Pacers outscored the Kings 28-12 on points in the paint and 14-2 on fast-break points in the half.
The Kings came out cold to start the second half, missing their first five shots, giving the Pacers a chance to put the game away early. But Indiana's offense was flat-footed and, as a result, the lead did not grow. It was 66-55 when the Kings began a 16-6 run that put the home team on its heels. Bibby scored 10 in the period and six in the run that closed the gap to 72-71 heading into the fourth. Peja Stojakovic gave the Kings their first lead of the game to start the fourth quarter, and the teams then had five more lead changes and six ties before the dramatic finish.
The Pacers may well have lost the game in the third quarter, but they still had a chance to win late. Jamaal TInsley made a pair of free throws to tie it at 88 with 57 seconds left, but Doug Christie hit a corner 3-pointer to give the Kings a 90-88 lead with 47 seconds remaining. O'Neal then muscled in a tough basket through a low-post double-team to tie it again. Chris Webber, 6 of 10 from the line to that point, then made a pair of free throws with 32 seconds, and O'Neal responded with two of his own with 24 seconds to go. But the defense couldn't come up with the critical stop as Bibby used a Brad Miller screen to create just enough space between himself and Tinsley to hit a fallaway 19-footer with 1.2 seconds left.
The Pacers lost their first season series, and it was a potentially big one as the Kings hold the tie-breaker in the race for the best record in the NBA. At 50-18, the Pacers have a half-game lead over the Kings (50-19), who snapped a two-game losing streak while winning their fourth in a row in the series. Sacramento also clinched a playoff berth while making Rick Adelman the winningest coach (296-151) in franchise history.
The Pacers shot .400 overall but just .256 in the second half, when they totaled just 34 points after scoring 35 in the first quarter. O'Neal's 23 points led the way, and he added seven rebounds and three blocks. Bender scored 15 points in 16 minutes off the bench, hitting 6 of 7 shots before falling prey to a shoulder injury that limited his effectiveness in the second half. Croshere scored 11 in 13 minutes. Al Harrington, filling in as the starting small forward, never got untracked and finished with 10 points and eight rebounds. Jeff Foster had a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Starting guards Reggie Miller and Tinsley combined to score 12 points on 4 of 20 shooting, including 0 of 11 from the 3-point line.
The 20th back-to-back set of the season wraps up in Memphis, a locale where the Pacers have yet to win in two previous trips. But those are the only two losses in the series, as the Pacers are 14-2 overall against the Grizzlies. That includes a 94-86 victory on Dec. 29 in Conseco Fieldhouse as Jermaine O'Neal and Ron Artest combined for 38 points. Memphis has lost two of three but with a 42-26 overall record is firmly entrenched in position for the franchise's first playoff berth.