8:30 PM ET, November 5, 2012
AT&T Center - San Antonio, Texas
Starting Lineups
(Sorry, no pics!)
PG- George Hill
SG - Paul George
SF - Sam Young
PF - David West
C - Roy Hibbert
Rotation
PG- Hill/Augustin/B. Hansbrough
SG - George/Stephenson/Johnson
SF - Young/Green
PF- West/T. Hansbrough/Plumlee
C- Hibbert/Mahinmi
After a double overtime win for the season opener in Indy and an overall unimpressive start to the season, the Pacers will look to bounce back against the red hot Spurs, who are 3-0. The Spurs beat the Thunder in thrilling fashion, as well as the Jazz and Hornets.
Regarding the previous game versus the Kings, Vogel said, "Certainly not the prettiest game in the world but happy to come out with the W. Like early last year, our defense is carrying us." He's certainly correct. In all 3 games, the Pacers have held their opponents to under 40% shooting, the Kings percentage being at 36.3%. While the offense sputtered at times, the defense was solid throughout.
To get the win in San Antonio, the Pacers need more production from their bench players. Green still had his problems with the Kings' defense, and Vogel relied on Stephenson in the 4th quarter and OT, which was a good move. Stephenson was solid against the Kings, and we need that off the bench against a strong team.
Turnovers were also a problem against the Kings, with 21. The Pacers should take better care of the ball and try to make the easy pass and minimize the unnecessary passes.
Starting Lineup
(Sorry, no pics!)
PG- Tony Parker
SG - Daniel Green
SF - Kawhi Leonard
PF- Tim Duncan
C - Boris Diaw
Rotation
PG- Parker/Neal/Mills
SG - Green/Ginobili
SF - Leonard/Jackson
PF - Duncan, Bonner, Blair
C- Diaw, Splitter
The Spurs will look to gain their 10th win in a row against us, and win the first 4 games in a season for the first time in franchise history. With Ginobili back from an injury against the Jazz, his return could have a big impact on the game.
Tony Parker has played well the past 3 games, and he looks to continue his play against the Pacers. The Spurs always play well when Parker plays with speed and is able to get to the rim and draw fouls. Hill stopping Parker from running up and down the court will make a big difference this game.
Injury Reports
Pacers
Granger - Out
Pendergraph - (Headache) Day to day
Spurs
None
Preview
via CBSSports.com
While they haven't made it easy on themselves so far this season, the San Antonio Spurs have a chance to secure the best start in franchise history.
The Spurs will try to improve to 4-0 while continuing their dominance of the Indiana Pacers on Monday night.
San Antonio came from behind in the final minute to win its season opener, got a buzzer-beating game-winner from Tony Parker in its second game and needed a fourth-quarter recovery after blowing a 19-point lead Saturday against Utah.
The Jazz outscored the Spurs 35-17 in the third quarter to tie that game at 79 before San Antonio salvaged a 110-100 victory.
"We didn't panic. I thought we did a great job of sticking with what we were doing," forward Tim Duncan said.
After hitting a 21-foot jumper to beat Oklahoma City on Thursday, Parker had a team-leading 24 points and 10 assists versus Utah. The Spurs guard also made a go-ahead 3-pointer with 50 seconds left in a season-opening 99-95 victory at New Orleans on Wednesday, when Duncan added a pair of late free throws.
Those efforts have helped San Antonio open with three consecutive wins for the fourth time in franchise history. Even with four titles, the Spurs have never won their first four games.
They have a good chance considering their track record against the Pacers (2-1), which includes wins in the last nine matchups and 12 of 13. San Antonio has prevailed in 13 of 14 home meetings and 10 straight.
The Spurs won 112-103 in last season's lone matchup March 31 at the AT&T Center. Duncan had a game-high 23 points and 11 rebounds, while Parker and Manu Ginobili each had 18 points.
Ginobili missed three preseason games and the first two regular-season contests with back problems before scoring eight points in 16 minutes Saturday. His presence in this game could make a difference, especially because he's averaged 20.8 points on 53.8 percent shooting and made 19 of 42 (45.2 percent) from 3-point range in his last eight games against the Pacers.
Indiana, meanwhile, remains without the services of Danny Granger, who has averaged 23.4 points in his last five matchups with San Antonio.
With a sore left knee keeping their perennial scoring leader out indefinitely, the Pacers have relied on their defense. They're giving up 92.0 points per game on 36.3 percent shooting after allowing 94.4 in 2011-12 and 100.9 in 2010-11.
Despite taking Saturday's game into double overtime, Sacramento failed to reach the century mark against Indiana in a 106-98 defeat. A 67-47 rebounding advantage aided the Pacers in their home opener, as did David West's 18 points and 18 boards.
Paul George added 16 points and a career-high 17 rebounds to help his team bounce back from Friday's 90-89 loss at Charlotte. That defeat followed a 90-88 win over Toronto on Wednesday, when George Hill hit a tiebreaking shot with two seconds left.
"It's good for our team to know that in the tough situations, when we're not playing well, that we can continue to grind it out," Hill said. "I'm happy that we're learning in November instead of April or May."
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Can't Forget The Tradition!
GO PACERS!
