Indiana Pacers Vs. New Jersey Nets: NBA Preview
The Indiana Pacers are all set to face the New Jersey Nets at the Prudential Centre on Monday night. The Pacers, who have won three out of their last five games, will be hoping to do well against a New Jersey team that is missing Deron Williams.
Indiana are coming off some impressive wins over the past week or so. Tyler Hansbrough put up some brilliant numbers to power the Pacers to consecutive wins over the New York Knicks, and followed it up with another 29 point, 12 rebound performance against
the Chicago Bulls in overtime.
However, the Pacers struggled defensively against the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday, allowing 64 points in the paint. Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol pounded the key area and the Pacers had no answer to their offensive assault. The Indiana offence also failed
as they shot a measly 35.6 percent from the field.
Tyler Hansbrough struggled to find his scoring rhythm. He could only manage 14 points and five rebounds in the loss. Danny Granger also had a sub-par night, as he shot 5-for-15 from the field. Indiana committed 20 turnovers, and allowed the Grizzlies to
run in transition for some easy baskets.
Indiana Coach Frank Vogel said after the game, "I told our guys before the game that certain broadcasters were commenting on the emphasis of how good they are with their hands, and at half time I think they still had nine steals… We did a poor job of recognising
how good their hands were getting the steals, and it led to run-outs and killed us on the break.''
The Nets however, are themselves sporting a three-game losing streak and with Deron Williams not in the playing roster, they have their work cut out. The Nets will have to play their cards right if they are to stand any chance of toppling the surging Pacers.
New Jersey have been on quite the rollercoaster ride this month, winning their first five games, which included a shock win over the Boston Celtics. However, the Nets have since gone on to lose three-straight.
Their stagnant offence failed to ignite against the Wizards on Sunday, as New Jersey blew a 17-point lead to lose it in the fourth quarter. Their fourth quarter melt-down was mainly down to the Nets playing without All-Star point-guard Deron Williams. New
Jersey turned the ball over 20 times in the game compared to just 10 times by Washington.
"I guess we just got complacent. I did a little," Nets’ centre Brook Lopez said. "Once we realised what was going on, it was too late.”
Meanwhile New Jersey coach Avery Johnson was very disappointed with his team’s performance. He said. "We were pretty good in the first half. In the second half, we weren't very good."
Coming into the game, Indiana have also got history on their side. The Pacers have beaten the Nets on the last six occasions and have won nine of their last 10 encounters.
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