Pacers get the upper hand against Heat

The Pacers defeated the visiting Miami Heat 107-96 in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference Finals Series Sunday afternoon. Game 2 will be at 8:30 Tuesday at Banker's Life Fieldhouse.
Forethoughts

Pacers center Roy Hibbert and his teammates had plenty
of reaason to smile after winning Game 1 against the Heat.

I have to admit, this looked almost too easy for the Pacers. They were confident from the outset and the offense looked as good as it has in the last two months. The Pacers last scored more than 107 in a non-overtime was back on Feb. 25 when they hit 118 against the lowly Lakers. The best part about this game is the Pacers played like they knew they were going to win, rather than playing like they were hoping they could win. There are all kinds of reasons why winning Game 1 of a playoff series is important. The Pacers have learned that the hard way in these playoffs. But for this first time this season, the Pacers will not have to win two straight games to win a series. That could be a difficult task in this series and remember neither the Heat nor the Pacers won two straight in this series last year, but the Heat having won the first game last year had the upper hand. And that's just what winning Game 1 means. It guarantees nothing for Game 2 or even for the rest of the series. But does give the Pacers the upper hand, something they've not experienced a lot in these playoffs. The next test now will be to see if they can keep that upper hand Tuesday night. It's important. probably more so against the Heat than any other team they've faced so far, to keep the gas pedal mashed to floorboard. If there's a hint of letting off of it, the Heat certainly know how to take advantage of it.
The Big Plays
There were a couple that stood out in this game.  In the third quarter the Heat made to cut the Pacers gap to nine, but David West hit a jumper to start an 11-2 run that got the lead to 18 points. Then at the end of the first half, the Heat had made an8-0 run to cut the deficit to 11, but the Pacers had the final shot of the quarter and Paul George drove the lane and made a nice pull up jumper to get the cushion back to 13.
The Ups
1) For once, we have to talk about the offense. The mark of a really good team is that it can beat you in more ways than one. The Pacers have made themselves one of the better defensive teams in the league the past couple of years, but have struggled a bit offensively at times. But things were all good on the offensive end for most of this game. The Pacers shot 51 percent and also got to the line 37 times, hitting 29 free throws. The free throw numbers say a lot about how the Pacers were the more aggressive team, taking the ball to the basket and making the Heat react in ways they didn't want.
2) It's true ABC tried to make a bit of an issue about Lance Stephenson saying how he was going to play against the Heat's Dwyane Wade. But I liked what Stephenson said because that shows he has confidence to go out and deliver and that's a big part of winning that battle. Stephenson responded with 17 points, eight assists and four rebounds. Sure, Wade made his presence felt with 27 points, too, on 12 of 18 shooting. So, my guess is his knees are just fine. Expect this to be a key matchup throughout the series.
3) One of the points that Pacers coach Frank Vogel made in a huddle was for the team to play like it was behind by 15. I've often wondered why more coaches don't preach that philosophy to keep a team's intensity level high. The one coach who did this with regularity back in the day was the Philadelphia 76ers' Billy Cunningham, who often implored his team to play like they were down 10 during the 1982-83 playoffs. The Sixers bought into that mantra and won the title. Hopefully the Pacers can buy into that type of attitude as well.
The Downs
1) While the offense was good, the defense left some room for improvement. The Heat shot 51 percent as well. It's rare to see two teams shoot 50 percent or better in the same game, and probably even more rare in the playoffs. When an NBA team shoots better than 50 percent, it almost never loses, so the Pacers were a bit fortunate in that way. The defense will have to be better throughout this series.
2) In case you are wondering just which team ESPN thought would win, we might have seen a hint in the early Sportscenter after the game. ESPN showed a graphic of what the Pacers have done after a loss in recent playoff games, causing the anchor to wonder out loud why that graphic was on the screen. So, you know, it was good to confuse them a bit by winning this one.
Next Up
You can be sure the Heat will come out with a different and more defensive mindset Tuesday night. And, yes, you can bet the Pacers will too. I'd be surprised if either team shoots close to 50 percent in this one. Expect the Heat to try and do more to frustrate Pacers center Roy Hibbert and West. They are both difficult matchups for the Heat and it will be important for the Pacers outside shooters to be confident and accurate again because they are likely going to get plenty more chances in this series.