The final score, 97-89, was not unexpected. The Pacers are still missing all their regular starters except for Hibbert, and the Grizzlies are a legitimate dark horse in the tough Western Conference. What was surprising is that the Pacers held a double digit lead in the first half until a 33-14 third quarter killed any chances of an upset.
Weird results tend to happen in the first week of an NBA season as teams try to find their groove, so I was hoping that the Pacers might have been able to sneak in a legitimate win after cruising by the Philaedlphia Tankers in their first game of the season.
What this game showed, however, is that there are going to be a lot of nights like this for the Pacers this season, where their spirit is there but their talent isn’t.
Cope led all Pacers with 16 points off the bench but continued to shoot poorly, going just 5-14 from the field. Donald Sloan was solid again with 12 points, 5 rebound and 7 assists, while CJ Miles had 13 on 5-12 shots. Newcomers Damjan Rudez had 11 and Rodney Stuckey had 10 points on 10 shots in 13 minutes.
After his big game one, Hibbert was limited to 8 points on 9 shots, but he did have 8 rebounds and a block. Consistency has always been Roy’s biggest problem, and if this is one of his “off” nights then the Pacers brass should be very happy.
Coming up, a rematch of last year’s first-round matchup with the Atlanta Hawks. You know you’re going to be out for blood and are not going to show any mercy for the shorthanded Pacers, so it could get ugly.
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