Pacers win on Hickory night
By TYLER SMITH
ISL Editor
(Photo by Pacers Sports and Entertainment)
INDIANAPOLIS — On some nights the Indiana Pacers will need a balanced attack on offense to win games. On other nights, they’ll need Paul George to put the team on his back. The latter happened on Friday night, as the Pacers defeated the Miami Heat 90-87 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on their first “Hickory” night.
Already playing without C.J. Miles, the Pacers lost another key player to injury as Rodney Stuckey went down with a twisted ankle halfway through the second quarter. It was time for Paul George to take over. He scored 36 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, and hit a lot of big shots down the stretch to help lead the Pacers to victory. He also helped limit Dwyane Wade to a season low nine points on just 4-of-15 shooting. It was the Pacers third straight win, after starting the season with three straight losses.
“I think I’m getting more comfortable with the offense,” George said. “Tonight, from the tip I got a quick layup and felt good from there on. And then I got rolling in the second half.”
Commenting on Paul’s performance, Coach Frank Vogel said: “I’m not really surprised. He’s been doing this since mid-summer and he works, works, and works. Nothing surprises me.”
Teammate George Hill gave his thoughts as well, with an early season quote of the year nomination: “When you see a guy rolling, you’ve got to milk the cow when the cow is there.”
Jordan Hill recorded his second consecutive double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench. He also had a big tip-in score late in the game. “He (J. Hill) came in and gave us a huge lift which he has all year,” Vogel said. “He’s one of the best offensive rebounders in the game.”
Though Lavoy Allen didn’t have huge numbers, the Pacers were plus+23 on the night when Allen was on the floor.
The Pacers have now won eight consecutive regular season home games over the Miami Heat. Miami’s last regular season victory at Bankers Life Fieldhouse was in February of 2012.
It was a solid victory for the (red) and gold, as the Pacers were wearing their Hickory uniforms for the first of 10 games this season. They will also wear these uniforms for five other home games- (Dec. 23rd, Jan. 26th, Feb. 24th, Mar. 15th, and April 10th). The Pacers will be back in action on Sunday afternoon, taking on LeBron James and the Cavaliers in Cleveland.
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