Bynum a big deal in Pacers win

The Pacers defeated the visiting Boston Celtics 94-83 Tuesday night. The Pacers broke a four-game losing streak and improved to 47-17 on the season and 30-4 at home. The Celtics are now 22-42.
The Big Plays
It seemed innocent enough at the time, but when David West hit a jumper to put the Pacers up 79-76 with just over six minutes to go the Celtics would never get closer again. It was part of an efficient night for West. Also, too, when Andrew Bynum took a pass and dunked for his first basket as a Pacer in the first half, well, there's not much better way to make a first impression in your first game with a new team.
The Ups

Andrew Bynum scores his first basket for the Pacers on a first-half dunk.

1) It's hard to imagine the Pacers winning this game without the play of Andrew Bynum. It was the center's first game-action for the Pacers since he signed with the team about a month ago. He finished with eight points and 10 rebounds and also had a nice assist to David West. He was also key to the second unit giving it another legitimate scorer, and it's especially important because Bynum is a low post scorer. And also, Bynum was a little upset when he didn't get the ball when Lance Stephenson drove the lane and tried to make a contested layup, while the wide open Bynum stood there and watched. Whether Bynum was mad because he didn't get the easy two points or because the right play wasn't made doesn't matter because a pass to him there would have definitely been the right play.
2) And well, one thing leads to another here. The Pacers bench has been missing in action, especially on the offensive end in some games recently (see the four-point effort in Dallas as Exhibit A). On this night, the bench scored 31 points, with 11 points from Luis Scola, nine from Evan Turner and three from Donald Sloan. It was particularly good too, to see the return of Scola's jump shot as he hit 5 of 7 from the floor. His ability to make that 18 footer around the top of the key area was a key factor in the Pacers success earlier this season.
3) West also gave the Pacers another efficient game, hitting 11 of 13 shots and finishing with 24 points. He also made a key runner in the lane late in the game that sealed the win for the Pacers. Even in the midst of the Pacers' sluggish play of late, West has not surprisingly been the ultimate professional both in his words and his actions on the court.
The Downs
1) The Pacers were up 65-50 in this one midway through the third quarter and well, maybe everyone, including the Pacers thought, OK, we can coast now. But the Celtics didn't and they eventually cut the lead to one on two occasions before the Pacers pulled away in the final five minutes. So, it would have been nice to see the Pacers put the hammer down when they had the lead at 15 and make it say 25 and just end this thing, but that didn't happen and so that's still a bit disturbing. They really should be able to end home games early against teams like the Celtics late in the season.
2) Even with the win, Paul George for most of the night was still forcing things on offense. A large majority of his shots came in one-on-one situations and were difficult makes. While he still managed to score 12 points on 5 of 10 shooting, he also had five turnovers. His best play without question came late in the game when he dribbled into the lane, ran into two defenders, and passed it back out to Stephenson for a wide-open 3-pointer that Stephenson made. No one's questioning George's talent as a player, but he's got to remember more often that he's got some pretty talented  teammates out there, too.
Afterthoughts
This in no way can be looked at as a momentum-turning type of win. Had the Pacers went out and won by 25 or 30 and with the fourth quarter being meaningless, that would have been a much better sign. However, after losing four in a row for the first time since March of 2012, I suppose you can't be too picky about the victories. One good sign was that the Pacers held the Celtics to 35.2 percent shooting, including 3 of 19 from 3-point range. So that's something to build on.
Next Up
The Pacers are off until Friday when they go to Philadelphia to play the 76ers. The Sixers are playing to get the best odds possible to get the first pick in the draft and have lost 17 straight going into their game Wednesday night against Sacramento. That has given them a 15-48 record, two games ahead of Milwaukee in the race for the worst record in the league. The Sixers are led by forward Thaddeus Young at 17.6 points and 6.1 rebounds, rookie of the year candidate guard Michael-Carter Williams at 16.9 points and 5.5 assists, guard Tony Wroten at 13.5 points and forward James Anderson at 10.2 points. Names like Spencer Hawes and Evan Turner (OK, you might know where he ended up) were traded at the deadline, so the Sixers are playing with a pretty depleted lineup.

The Pacers defeated the 76ers 106-98 back on Nov. 23.