Pacers look a little broken going into break

The Pacers ended their pre-All-Star Break season with an 80-73 loss to the visiting Dallas Mavericks Wednesday night. The Pacers go into the break with a 40-12 record while the Mavericks are 32-22. The Pacers also fell to 25-3 at home.
The Big Plays
This game was tied at 66-66 with 5:45 left and the Mavericks went on an 8-0 run to take a lead they would never relinquish. The Pacers had built a 60-55 lead on two free throws by Danny Granger at the 3:07 mark of the third quarter, but two Monta Ellis free throws and a Dirk Nowitzki 3-pointer got the Mavericks right back into it, even though the Pacers were up 62-60 at the end of the quarter. Paul George did hit a 3-pointer to bring it to 76-73 with 37.5 seconds to go, but the Mavericks hit their free throws late for the final score.
The Ups

Danny Granger hit three 3-pointers and scored 13 points Wednesday night.

1) In most Pacers games this season, it's been pretty easy to find who did something good. But that was not the case in this one. The Pacers did get a boost off the bench from Danny Granger who had 13 points on 4 of 9 shooting, including making three 3-pointers. In a game where the Pacers were desperate for some kind of offense, that was good to see. It just wasn't a situation where Granger could carry the team either, though.
2) Former Pacers coach Rick Carlisle has had success at Dallas, including winning a title there in 2011. But what has also been impressive in Carlisle's tenor there is that he has changed the whole mindset of the team. It went from being an all offense, outscore the opponent organization, to a defense first organization. Wednesday night's game was ugly, to put it kindly, and these are the types of games that Dallas would not have won in the pre-Carlisle years. Now the Mavericks not only can win these types of games, they can create them. Carlisle even has Monta Ellis playing defense these days.
The Downs
1) It was really a Jekyll and Hyde type performance for the Pacers from Monday night's win over Denver to the Wednesday loss. The Pacers shot a season-low 32 percent from the floor on the way to a season low in points. Back about 20 years ago or so, when Bobby Knight was coaching at Indiana University, he called a team doing something like this a "cerebral reversal." It's as if they forgot how to play the game at times. So maybe it's a good thing the all-star break is coming along this week. The Pacers have lost two of three, so it could be just the right time to take a few days off.
2) I'm a fan of Pacers coach Frank Vogel and similar to Carlisle, he's played a major role in turning the franchise's identity into a defensive mindset. However, it was reported that before this game that he reminded the team that the all-star break had not yet begun and to not play as if it was a night off. And in retrospect, maybe that was little bit like telling a kid that there are some homemade cookies up in the cabinet and you can't have them until tomorrow. It's just impossible not to at least think about and it's likely the kid is going to sneak up there and get one before the day is out. Maybe Vogel should have said, hey, let's go out and keep playing like we did with Denver. Overall, Vogel's done a great job and deserves to be in the Coach of the Year discussion. But maybe he might choose his words a little differently in a similar situation next time.
Afterthoughts
No question, this game was a paint dryer, grass grower, however you want to put it. It was partly due to the fact that both teams do play defense. It was a disturbing though, to see the Pacers lose their second game in three outings because both of those games are ones they absolutely should have won. Sure, there are ups and downs during the season, but this on-off-on-off button style just won't work come playoff time and it's not a good habit to get into now. Hopefully the break will allow the Pacers to relax, and start what is the rest of the season the way they started the regular season.
Next Up
The Pacers don't play until Tuesday when they play host to Atlanta, but you can catch Roy Hibbert and George in the all-star star game at 8 p.m. Sunday night. There is also a possibility that Lance Stephenson might be added to the roster as the Heat's Dwyane Wade did not play Wednesday night due to a foot injury. So, if it happens it would be great to see Born Ready in the all-star game. It's the kind of showcase that would fit him well.