Pacers prove there's still work to do in loss

The visiting Pacers lost to the New York Knicks 92-86 Wednesday night. The Pacers are now 50-18 after having a four-game winning streak snapped while the Knicks are 28-40 and now have won seven straight.
Forethoughts
It wasn't really surprising that the Pacers lost this one, not with the way they have been playing lately. The signs were there partly because the Knicks have been playing the best they have all season, even though their last five wins had come against teams with losing records. And even though the Pacers had won four straight, none had come against teams with winning records. But the real issue was the Pacers had been playing down to their opponents' levels and that continued again Wednesday. It's not just the loss that's the problem here, but the fact that it continued a string of sub-par performances, save maybe the second half against the Pistons Saturday night. So, if you were thinking, maybe hoping, a trip to Madison Square Garden might help bring the Pacers back to their former selves, a team that didn't mess around against lesser opponents in the first half of the season, well it didn't happen yet. It's certainly possible for them to get it back. Maybe they will against Chicago Friday. Maybe not.
The Big Plays
As usual there are several key moments in this type of game, but a particular one that sticks out came with 5:48 left in the game and the Knicks leading 75-69. With the shot clock running down after the ball was knocked away, Knicks guard Raymond Felton retrieved the ball and in front the Knicks bench banked in about a 27-foot 3-pointer. That put the Knicks up nine and while the Pacers cut the gap back to four, once Felton's shot went in you just kind of knew it wasn't going to be the Pacers' night.
The Ups
1) Pacers center Roy Hibbert had been mostly missing on offense for the previous nine games, hitting just 29 of 68 shots for 43 percent. But Hibbert was the key to second half comeback and he hit 8 of 10 shots on the night and finished with 20 points. The Pacers will need more efficient games like that from Hibbert from this point forward if they want to get back to where they were earlier in the season.

Paul George didn't have his best game Wednesday, hitting just 4 of 17 shots.

2) Overall, the Pacers' defense was respectable. They held the Knicks to 39 percent shooting from the floor. If the Pacers can keep that going that may be a sign of better things to come.  The Knicks also hit just 4 of 17 3-point attempts, including Felton's prayer that went in, so that may be a good sign too of the defense picking up a bit.
The Downs
1) Paul George didn't have his best night. And that's OK, he doesn't have to play at an MVP caliber level every game for the Pacers to win. But he does need to be least average and he wasn't in this one. George hit just 4 of 17 shots from the floor and had five of the Pacers 13 turnovers. It's also a bit concerning too that George had foul issues again, which causes him not to be on the floor for key stretches sometimes.
2) Without key guys C.J. Watson and Andrew Bynum, the Pacers bench couldn't get much going in this one. The reserves scored just 12 points and hit just 4 of 14 shots. If the Pacers could have gotten just a little push from the second unit in this one, they may have well won.
Next Up
The Pacers come home to play the Chicago Bulls in a 7 p.m. game Friday. The Bulls have been without all-star point guard Derrick Rose for most of the season, but they have still played well and have a 38-30 record. The Pacers lost their first game of the season to the Bulls back when Rose was still playing 110-94 on Nov. 16. The Pacers defeated the Bulls 97-80 on Nov. 6. This game will be the first of two matchups in four days against the Bulls as they will also play in Chicago in an 8 p.m. game Monday night. The Bulls are led by former Pacers reserve point guard D.J. Augustine at 14.3 points and five assists per game, forward Carlos Boozer at 14 points and 8.5 rebounds, forward Taj Gibson at 13.3 points and six rebounds, Jimmy Butler at 12.9 points,  center Joakim Noah at 12.3 points, 11.3 rebounds and five assists and former Pacer Mike Dunleavy at 11.2 points. The Bulls calling card remains to be defense though as they are allowing just 92.3 points per game while opponents are shooting just 43.1 percent.