Pacers beat Knicks- face PG on Thursday
By TYLER SMITH (@TylerSmith_ISL)
ISL Editor
INDIANAPOLIS — After dropping five of their previous seven games, the Indiana Pacers were in desperate need of a win on Tuesday night to get back on track. As usual, the New York Knicks were happy to oblige. The Pacers took care of business, defeating the Knicks 103-98 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
It wasn’t as easy as it could’ve been. The Knicks led by 10 in the 2nd quarter, as the Pacers only shot 2-of-13 from behind the arc in the 1st half. Indiana finished the half on an 18-5 run and then connected on 6-of-9 3’s in the 3rd quarter to take a 12-point lead.
New York made a late run, but the Pacers were able to hold on. “We got the win, and that’s what matters,” said Head Coach Nate McMillan. “We’re going to be okay. We know what the schedule is. These are kind of the dog days of the season. We’ve got to continue to take it one game at a time.”
Bojan Bogdanovic led the way with 24 points. Six players scored in double-figures, as the Pacers continue to lead the NBA in that statistic.
The Pacers dished out 26 assists and committed only 10 turnovers, while forcing the Knicks into 20 turnovers on the night. Darren Collison had another excellent night with 16 points, nine assists, and zero turnovers. He also hit the game’s biggest shot- giving the Pacers a six-point lead with 24 seconds to play, and two free-throws to seal the victory.
“I thought Coach (McMillan) did a good job motivating us for this game, like he usually does,” said Collison. “He’s doing a lot of shuffling of guys who are in and out of the lineup. Once we have a little more consistency and guys get healthy, we’ll be fine.”
After defeating their formal rival, the Pacers will now turn their attention to their former star. Paul George and the Oklahoma City Thunder make their way to Indianapolis on Thursday night. It will be another huge challenge for the Pacers, who are in the midst of their toughest stretch of games of the season. The Knicks were able to give a momentary break, but the brutal schedule returns in less than 48 hours.
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