Pacers finally find their way in win

The Pacers defeated the visiting Detroit Pistons Wednesday night 101-94. The Pacers are now 53-23 while the Pistons are 27-48. The Pacers are now 34-5 at home after breaking a three-game losing streak overall.
Forethoughts
It's just hard to tell how much this game means in terms of playing better because the Pistons have been rising on the tank-meter (losing to get a better draft pick) lately. However, with the way Pacers had been playing, losing three straight and five of six and shooting below 40 percent from the field in six straight games, just getting a win by any means is positive step. The hopes here were that if the Pacers had really turned the corner, they would at some point take control of this game and pull away in the second half and go on to an easy victory. That didn't happen here, but at least a loss didn't happen either and for the moment that's the most important thing.
Big Plays
There were some stretches in this one where we saw the Pacers of pre-all-star break form, sharing the ball, and finding the open man, especially late in the second half when Lance Stephenson led a key run to get the Pacers into the lead. The big shot though was about a 35-footer by Paul George with just over three minutes left that gave the Pacers a four-point lead. The only reason he shot the ball was because the shot clock and mistakenly not reset and he thought the Pacers were in danger of a violation. But these days, who's complaining.
The Ups

Paul George had 27 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists
as the Pacers broke a three-game losing streak.

1) We always like to say that basketball is a team game and that not too much should fall on one player. But if the Pacers want to go far in the playoffs, and by that I mean beat the Heat, they're going to need a confident Paul George. They got that in this game with George scoring 27 points on 9 of 19 shooting, grabbing 13 rebounds and handing out seven assists. The Pacers are capable of winning when George has an off night, but their chances are much better when George is assertive like he was in this one.
2) We don't know when or if Andrew Bynum will play again, but Ian Mahinmi filled the reserve center role quite nicely in this game. He finished with 10 points, five rebounds and three blocks and gave the Pacers a nice boost when Roy Hibbert went down with an injury after a hard fall to the floor in the second quarter.
3) After topping out at 84 points in the previous six games, including not reaching 80 in five of those, the Pacers seemed to remember how to shot and pass in this one. I thought maybe the scoreboard didn't reach triple digits any longer. But in this game, the offensive spacing was better, players cut to the basket on occasion, and the screens were more crisp than they have been in recent games. The spacing here is especially important because in the NBA players are taller and more athletic than at any other level. So, if the offense is bunched even a little too much, the defense has the ability to recover. The result was the Pacers shot just under 50 percent from the floor in this one at 39 of 79 from the field.
The Downs
1) While things were better in this game, it's also important to remember the Pistons came into this one not playing well at all. I can't help but think that earlier in the season the Pacers would have won a game against this kind of of team by 20-plus points. So, while it's OK to feel good about a win, to come out and say all of the problems the team has had in the last month plus are suddenly fixed is not true either. There were still errant post passes and there were still times the defense gave up the baseline and there were still times when the Pistons were beating the Pacers to loose balls. So yes, still plenty to work on, but at least they can do after a victory for once.
Next Up
The Pacers visit the Toronto Raptors in a 7 p.m. game Friday. The Raptors are 43-3) and are fighting for the fourth best record in the East as they aretied with the Bulls after Wednesday night's games
. The Raptors started the season a slowly, but have played well since trading Rudy Gay. The Pacers defeated the Raptors 91-84 in Indianapolis back on Nov. 8, lost to the Raptors in Toronto 92-85 on Jan. 1 and then defeated the Raptors back in Indianapolis 86-79 on Jan. 7. The Raptors are led by DeMar DeRozan at 22.7 points, Kyle Lowry at 17.4 points and 7.6 assists, Terrence Ross at 10.8 points, Amir Johnson at 10.8 points and 6.8 rebounds, Jonas Valanciunas at 10.7 points and 8.6 rebounds and Patrick Patterson at 9.5 points.