Pacers-Pistons Preview

By JEFF BARTL
Posted Dec 15 2012 1:34AM

Paul George has relished his opportunity to play a larger role for the Indiana Pacers as Danny Granger continues to recover from a knee injury.

The Detroit Pistons, though, found out what he was capable of last season.

After another solid performance, George looks to help guide Indiana to a season-best third consecutive victory Saturday night against Detroit, which has won three straight home meetings in the series.

Granger still has yet to play due to patellar tendinitis in his left knee, but George has stepped up his offensive game and is second on the team with 16.5 points per game.

Though he's gone through a few rough patches - including going 2 for 11 with four points Nov. 30 in Sacramento before a scoreless effort the following night at Golden State - George has shown flashes of a budding star.

He scored a career-high 37 points in a win over New Orleans on Nov. 21 and netted 34 in a victory at Chicago on Dec. 4, which began a six-game stretch of him averaging 25.0 points while shooting 51.4 percent.

George, who scored 27 in Wednesday's win over Cleveland, went 5 for 7 from 3-point range and scored 28 points in Friday's 95-85 victory over Philadelphia.

"I really want the ball. I really feel right now that I can make plays and create for others," George said. "And when we need the shot to go down, I can make them."

George's stat line wasn't even the most impressive on his own team Friday. George Hill had his first career triple-double with 15 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists while Roy Hibbert finished with 19 points and 13 boards.

"I want to be aggressive. I was taking shots and they were dropping, so I'm happy for that," Hibbert said. "But I'm happier with the win."

Coach Frank Vogel had plenty of praise for George and Hibbert.

"(George is) making shots right now. It's just confidence," Vogel said. "Roy works harder than anybody and he's staying with it and we're staying with him."

George, who averaged 7.0 points in his first six games against Detroit, scored 27 points and added 10 rebounds during Indiana's 103-97 win over the Pistons on April 23.

The Pacers (12-11) have won 10 of the last 13 matchups, though the three defeats all came on the road in the most recent meetings in Auburn Hills.

Struggling Detroit (7-18) will be looking to bounce back after Friday's 107-105 double-overtime loss in Brooklyn on Joe Johnson's jumper as the buzzer sounded.

Brandon Knight scored a team-high 22 points and Tayshaun Prince added 12 and 10 rebounds for the Pistons, who have dropped three straight and seven of their last nine.

"I just feel so bad for our guys," Prince said. "They worked so hard for this. They fought and fought and fought."

Greg Monroe scored 17 points but missed two free throws with 17 seconds left in the second OT that would have given the Pistons the lead.

"We showed great resolve, great fight and we competed extremely hard," coach Lawrence Frank said. "There's no one there that's happy with the consolation prize, (but) disappointed that we came up short because we know we got it in both regulation and overtime."

Detroit has lost three straight home games since a five-game winning streak at The Palace from Nov. 18-Dec. 3.

Pacers upend Pistons 88-77

Posted Dec 15 2012 11:40PM

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) After losing center Roy Hibbert to an injury after the first half, the Indiana Pacers turned to their defense, Tyler Hansbrough and Jeff Pendergraph.

Those efforts led to an 88-77 win over the Detroit Pistons on Saturday night.

David West had 23 points and George Hill 18 points and seven assists for the Pacers.

The win put the Pacers two games over .500 for the first time this season.

Hibbert suffered a deep thigh bruise.

But Indiana held the Pistons scoreless for 6:05 in the fourth quarter while also getting big efforts from reserve big men Hansbrough and Pendergraph. Hansbrough had 11 points and six rebounds in almost 25 minutes and Pendergraph two points and three rebounds in just under eight minutes.

"Guys stepping up after we lost Roy to an injury," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. "... Pendergraph and Hansbrough really stepped up."

Paul George added 15 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.

Greg Monroe led the Pistons with 18 points and added eight rebounds and Rodney Stuckey had 15 points and seven assists. Brandon Knight added 14 points.

"It came down to a grind game in the last eight minutes of the game. They did what they do best and that's win grind games," Detroit rookie center Andre Drummond said. "They're a great team and David West hit a lot of tough shots today. It was a learning game for us today."

Kyle Singler's jumper brought Detroit within two at 68-66 with nine minutes left.

But that's when the Pacers defense put the clamps on the Pistons offense, which didn't score again until Stuckey's driving layup with 2:55 remaining.

"That's what we've been preaching all year long: The defense is going to get us the wins," Hill said.

West added: "We just try to make teams score through us or over us."

Indiana scored 11 points during that span.

West hit a free throw with 7:23 left, George put in a driving lay-in at 6:03, West hit a hook with 5:21 remaining, Hill hit a 3 with four minutes left, George made a free throw with 3:36 on the clock and West's turnaround jumper gave the Pacers a 79-66 lead with 3:17 left.

"Our crunch time defense has been solid for us this year," Vogel said. "And we've got big-time shot makers in George Hill and David West."

Detroit coach Lawrence Frank lamented the Pistons' dry spell.

"Really, you look right at the 8:23 mark, it was a two-point game," he said. "From that point on, we missed five jumpers, we had two turnovers and a missed layup."

Indiana took a 63-60 lead into the fourth quarter after Singler's 3-pointer with 1:29 left in the third and Drummond's put-back dunk with 49 seconds remaining in the quarter brought the Pistons to within three.

Indiana led 42-38 at the half.

The Pacers went on an early 15-0 run that gave them a 17-6 lead with 6:51 left in the first quarter after Gerald Green's 3-pointer.

But the Pistons followed that up with a 14-3 spurt that allowed them to tie the game at 20 on Stuckey's driving layup with 1:59 remaining in the opening quarter.

Notes: Vogel said he expected Hibbert to be ready for Indiana's next game, on Tuesday at Milwaukee. ... Pacers guard Lance Stephenson didn't play because of a sprained right ankle. ... Both teams were playing for the second consecutive night. The Pacers beat Philadelphia 95-85 at home and Detroit lost 107-105 in double overtime to the Nets in Brooklyn.

Notebook: Pacers 88, Pistons 77

Dana Gauruder, For NBA.com
Posted Sat Dec 15, 2012 11:40 PM - Updated Sat Dec 15, 2012 11:40 PM

THE FACTS: Power forward David West scored a game-high 23 points as the Indiana Pacers defeated the Detroit Pistons 88-77 at The Palace of Auburn Hills on Saturday night. George Hill, coming off his first career triple-double, contributed 18 points and seven assists. Paul George added 15 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and four steals for the Pacers (13-11), who won their third straight. Greg Monroe had 18 points and eight rebounds for the Pistons (7-19), who lost their fourth straight and sixth in the last seven games.

QUOTABLE: "I told [Paul George] it's not always about scoring. When your scoring is not there, impact the game in other ways as far as rebounding, making great passes and locking your opponent down on the defensive end. That shows the true definition of a great player. He was upset at himself for missing some shots but like I told him, that's what makes a great player, when you do other things. That's what he did today."

-- George Hill

THE STAT: 55.9. The Pacers are ranked No. 1 in the league defensively in terms of points allowed and field-goal percentage, but their offensive efficiency was on display during the second half. They shot 55.9 percent from the field, making 19 of their 34 shots. West scored 19 of his points after halftime and Hill had 10, while George was the main playmaker with six assists.

TURNING POINT: Clinging to a 68-66 advantage, the Pacers reeled off 11 unanswered points to take command. West was the driving force, scoring seven of the points on a free throw, a post-up move and two midrange jumpers. Hill added a 3-point shot during that stretch.

QUOTABLE II: "We're just trying to be solid early on. We were having difficulty winning games and we understand if we play solid defensively, we'll give ourselves a chance to win. We've been dependent on that throughout the year. When our offense is down, we've been able to rely on our togetherness defensively."

-- David West on Indiana's top-ranked defense

HOT: Pacers forward Tyler Hansbrough always gives the Pistons fits and Saturday was no exception. He had 11 of the Pacers' 19 bench points, and added six rebounds. He averaged 14.7 points and 8.7 rebounds against the Pistons last season.

NOT: Detroit's Tayshaun Prince looked like a 32-year old small forward going on 40 Saturday, while playing the second game of a back-to-back. He had just four points, no assists and one rebound while committing three turnovers. He had 12 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in a double-overtime loss to New Jersey Friday.

ROOKIE WATCH: Detroit center Andre Drummond continues to make a strong impression. He had 11 points, nine rebounds and three blocks in 29 minutes. Starting guard Kyle Singler had seven points on 3-for-9 shooting and is averaging just 6.1 points in the last seven games.

NOTABLE: Pacers center Roy Hibbert suffered a left thigh injury blocking a Monroe shot in the final minute of the first half and did not return. ... Starting guard Lance Stephenson missed his second consecutive game with a sprained right ankle. Coach Frank Vogel said Stephenson could return for Tuesday's road game at Milwaukee. ... Rodney Stuckey added 15 points and a team-high seven assists for Detroit, but starting point guard Brandon Knight was held to 14 points, the first time he failed to reach 20 points in six games. ... Detroit had won 10 of its last 13 at home against Indiana. ... The Pistons' 7-18 record entering the game tied their second-worst start after 25 games in franchise history. They were 5-20 last season and also had 7-18 records in 1962-63, 1963-64 and 2010-11.

UP NEXT: For the Pacers, Tuesday @ Milwaukee, Wednesday vs. Utah, Friday @ Cleveland. For the Pistons, Monday vs. L.A. Clippers, Wednesday @ Toronto, Friday vs. Washington.

• Pacers: Granger, Plumlee
• Pistons: English, Middleton

• Pacers: --
• Pistons: --

• Lead Changes: 2
• Times Tied: 3

• Arena: Palace of Auburn Hills, Detroit, MI
• Officials: #43 Dan Crawford, #44 Eli Roe, #59 Gary Zielinski
• Attendance: 13235
• Duration: 2:05