The Indiana Pacers fell behind 5-0, led just once (8-7), and trailed by as many as 21 points Monday night as the Atlanta Hawks came into Bankers Life Fieldhouse and left with their seventh straight win on the season.
The Pacers, meanwhile, failed to match the Hawks’ energy and dropped their fifth straight game in the midst of a difficult stretch — eight consecutive games against teams with winning records.
108-92 was the final, as the Hawks came into Indianapolis and left with their eighth win versus the Pacers in the last 12 regular-season meetings.
“We seemed a step slow,” said Pacers head coach Frank Vogel. “I thought our guys were trying. I thought they were giving the effort. But clearly the Hawks were a more energized team.”
Added starting point guard Rodney Stuckey: “We can’t make any excuses, we just have to come out and play. I thought we were flat a little bit. That happens sometimes, but you have to fight through it.”
With their first-round playoff meetings in each of the past two seasons, these teams know each other extremely well and know where their advantages lie. Though strong at all five spots, the Hawks are especially strong at point guard and on the wing with their shooting.
“The fact that Jeff Teague’s never been an All-Star is puzzling to me because he’s certainly an All-Star caliber player and I’m sure he’ll be there this year with their record where it is,” Vogel said.
Teague finished with 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting, along with seven assists in nearly 32 minutes.
For the Hawks, everything starts with Teague, the Pike High School product, who is always very pleasing to watch. He’s got a quick step, is efficient with the ball, and obviously can score. His penetration typically leads to a above-average shot in the lane or a trey from one of the number of shooters on the team.
Al Horford led the Hawks with 25 points and eight boards. As a team, they made almost 52 percent of their shots attempted, including 9-of-21 (43 percent) from beyond the arc. Add in a 10-point advantage at the foul line and they had an all around solid night.
“They got guys that can make 3-point shots and long jumpers,” said Indiana’s C.J. Miles. “Everybody. Horford … is one of the best in the league shooting long 2s. Everybody knows Kyle Korver is the best 3-point shooter in the league coming off screens and the things he does. They put a lot of pressure on you.
“And Jeff Teague just being a little jitterbug basically. And they have a lot of balance.”
What he’s basically saying is they are a well-compiled team that can beat you inside and out. It’s not by accident they are second (14-6), behind Toronto (16-5), in the Eastern Conference standings.
“Tonight was Teague, Wednesday it’s Chris Paul, Kyle Lowry the following day, then Damon Lillard,” said Stuckey, who tallied 15 points. “That’s NBA basketball, man, so you have to be ready for it.”
After facing the likes of Phoenix, Portland, and tonight Atlanta, Miles said they’re seeing first-hand how critical pace of play is.
“There’s a reason why teams like that, and San Antonio and you look at Golden State right now, teams that play with that type of pace offensively … are successful,” he said. “And you learn and you see and everybody gets open shots because you get the defense moving. Then, those contested shots are a little easier because he shot four open ones already.”
The Hawks over the last decade, for whatever reason, have been the Pacers’ Achilles heel — particularly at Philips Arena in Atlanta. To make matters worse, there is no letup on the Pacers’ schedule anytime soon. Monday they began a stretch of five games over eight days and six in ten.
Vogel says he and his coaching staff considers everything everyday. George Hill remains out for at least a couple more weeks, and Ian Mahinmi is sidelined for put to eight weeks with a torn left plantar fascia. What they aren’t going to do after losing five in a row, Vogel says, is overreact.
“We’ve been in a lot of these games that we’ve lost,” Vogel said. “It’s a very tough stretch of our schedule. We’re battling through a lot of different situations.”
So, how best to get out of a rut like they’re in?
“Just got to stay together, man,” Stuckey said. “Stay together, communicate and we just got to go compete for 48 minutes. We have a tough schedule ahead of us but we just got to come out and play hard and give ourselves a chance to win a game.”
Next, the Los Angeles Clippers make their only visit to Indy on Wednesday. Like the Hawks, Doc Rivers’ team (14-5) is streaking in the right direction, winners of their last seven games.
Noteworthy:
- Unhappy with the officiating, Pacers coach Frank Vogel was given his second technical foul of the season. (He led all coaches last season.)
- No sign of reserve center Ian Mahinmi at the game. He was not on the bench and I did not see him before or after the game.
- C.J. Miles said he’s comfortable starting and in his very familiar role as a scorer off the bench. He gave the do-what’s-best-for-the-team line and says he finally feels back in rhythm after dealing with a migraine and issues throughout his body as a result. Remember, he wasn’t even completely healthy during training camp (calf injury).