Pacers coast to easy rout of Wizards
The Indiana Pacers, the best home team in the NBA, faced little challenge from the Washington Wizards, who were trying for their longest road winning streak in more than five years.
David West scored 20 points and C.J. Watson had 16, leading the Pacers to a 93-66 win against the Wizards Friday night.
“This was a sensational defensive effort,” Indiana coach Frank Vogel said. “You want to see a team come out and play as hard as any on the defensive end, come see this team play.”
Indiana (29-7) used an 11-3 run in the third quarter to create separation from Washington. Two field goals from West capped the swing, which put the Pacers ahead, 56-40.
Trying for their first fourgame win streak on the road since February 2008, the Wizards (16-18) stumbled at the foul line. They finished 9 of 23 on free throws, hitting just five of their first 14.
“I thought we did a great job moving the ball early in the game and sticking with it,” point guard John Wall said. “But you can’t stay in the game when you are missing free throws like we were.”
Washington lost to the Pacers for the 11th time in 12 tries and hasn’t won at Indiana since April 18, 2007.
Indiana remains the NBA’s best home team at 17-1 at Banker’s Life Fieldhouse, including seven in a row.
Wall and the Pacers’ Paul George, two of the league’s bright young stars, each opened 1 of 8 from the field. George finished with eight points on 2-of-14 shooting and Wall had 13 points.
“We knew they would be tough to beat,” West said. “They came out strong and we countered.”
Other games
Timberwolves 119, Bobcats 92: Nikola Pekovic scored 26 points in 27 minutes, and host Minnesota blew off some steam with a win against Charlotte. Kevin Love had 19 points and 14 rebounds, Kevin Martin added 19 points and Minnesota’s bench had 20 points before Charlotte’s reserves even got on the board late in the second quarter. Anthony Tolliver led the Bobcats with 21 points on 5-for-5 shooting from 3-point range as the Bobcats lost for the seventh time in eight games. The Timberwolves lost Wednesday in the final seconds, 104-103, against Phoenix to fall to 0-10 in games decided by four points or fewer. Then the tension lingered into the locker room where Love, who was critical recently of a particularly paltry output by the reserves, ripped J.J. Barea and Dante Cunningham for their disinterested body language at the end of the bench.
Cavaliers 113, Jazz 102: Kyrie Irving had 25 points and eight assists to lift Cleveland past Utah. In Luol Deng’s first game with the Cavaliers, Irving scored 17 points in the third quarter to turn a three-point deficit into a 15-point lead as Cleveland snapped Utah’s four-game home win streak. Deng, acquired in a trade with Chicago, had 10 points in his Cleveland debut.
Pistons 114, 76ers 104: Josh Smith had 22 points in an outstanding all-around game, Brandon Jennings made four 3-pointers in the second half and visiting Detroit Pistons snapped a six-game losing streak with a comeback victory against Philadelphia. Five other players scored in double figures for the Pistons, who averaged just 88.8 points during their skid. Kyle Singler and Will Bynum each had 16 off the bench. Thaddeus Young scored 22 points for the 76ers, who have lost three in a row.
Nets 104, Heat 95: Joe Johnson scored 32 points, Shaun Livingston helped Brooklyn dominate the second overtime after LeBron James fouled out and the host Nets beat Miami for their fifth win in a row in a game that featured players on both teams wearing nicknames on their jerseys, a first of its kind in the NBA. Livingston had two baskets and two blocked shots in the second OT, finishing with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists over 51 minutes in a sensational effort while starting for injured point guard Deron Williams. James had 36 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists.
Mavericks 107, Pelicans 90: Dirk Nowitzki scored 24 points, Monta Ellis added 23 and visiting Dallas sent short-handed New Orleans to its fourth loss in a row. Vince Carter added 14 points and Jae Crowder 12 for the Mavericks, who never trailed.
Grizzlies 104, Suns 99: Mike Conley matched his career high with 31 points, and host Memphis used a fourth-quarter burst to edge Phoenix. Zach Randolph had 20 points and 13 rebounds for the Grizzlies, while Ed Davis had 10 points and 17 rebounds to help Memphis outrebound the Suns, 53-44.
Hawks 83, Rockets 80: Kyle Korver scored 20 points, including four free throws in the final 16 seconds, and host Atlanta fought off Houston’s late comeback. Paul Millsap also had 20 points for the Hawks, and James Harden led the Rockets with 25 points. Dwight Howard added 15 points and 11 rebounds for Houston.
Bulls 81, Bucks 72: Carlos Boozer had 19 points and 13 rebounds in his first game back from a right knee injury, Mike Dunleavy Jr. added 18 points and Chicago won at Milwaukee for its fourth consecutive victory.