Pacers-Hawks Preview

By NICOLINO DIBENEDETTO
Posted Feb 08 2012 12:59AM

Danny Granger is one of the keys to the Indiana Pacers' success this season.

A gutsy effort may have boosted his chances to being named to the All-Star game.

Granger will try to keep the Pacers surging with another strong effort against the struggling Atlanta Hawks as they try to win at Philips Arena for the first time in over five years Wednesday night.

Granger is averaging 18.2 points to lead Indiana (17-7), which is second in the Central Division, 2 1/2 games behind first-place Chicago.

The forward's 22.0 points per game is a big reason for the Pacers winning five of their last six, during which they've averaged 104.6 points in those victories - 10.1 higher than their season average.

Granger overcame some sluggishness to score 12 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter to pace a 104-99 win over Utah on Tuesday. He struggled after taking medicine to help him get some rest.

"It just slowed me down basically the whole time," Granger said. "It was supposed to help me sleep, but it kept me groggy the whole day. I was waiting for it to wear off and I started the game and I still was kind of groggy.

"No more of that medicine. I took some bad medication."

Granger's efforts may be rewarded with a spot in the All-Star game in Orlando later this month. He appeared in the 2009 contest, and will find out Thursday if he'll go to a second one.

Coach Frank Vogel has been actively campaigning for his players.

"We've sent emails out and make phone calls and we definitely want the coaches around the league to understand the sacrifices our guys have made to buy into the team approach and how it's led to winning," Vogel said. "And particularly the things we've done on the defensive end. I don't want that to go unnoticed."

Granger may further reinforce his coach's beliefs against the Hawks (16-9). He made 9 of 16 from the field - 3 of 5 from beyond the arc - scored 24 points in a 96-84 win over them Jan. 11.

Indiana, though, has lost eight in a row at Atlanta since a win Dec. 22, 2006.

The Pacers may be visiting Philips Arena at an opportune time since the Hawks are trying to avoid being swept in a four-game homestand after starting 8-1 there.

They haven't endured such a slide as host since dropping a four in a row from March 21-April 1, 2007.

They're averaging 84.7 points over the last three games and coming off a 99-90 loss Tuesday to Phoenix.

Part of Atlanta's troubles stem from injuries to center Al Horford (torn left pectoral muscle) and backup Jason Collins (sprained left elbow). Horford got hurt against the Pacers earlier in January and is out for three months, while Collins is sidelined for at least two weeks.

The Hawks could also use some increased production from Joe Johnson, the team leader with 18.6 points per game.

The swingman is averaging 14.3 points during the homestand, potentially hurting his chances at being named to a sixth All-Star game. He had 15 points at Indiana on Jan. 11, but is averaging 23.8 in nine career meetings in Atlanta, with the Hawks winning eight of them.

Josh Smith scores 28, Hawks beat Pacers 97-87

By PAUL NEWBERRY
Posted Feb 08 2012 10:59PM

ATLANTA (AP) Josh Smith is skeptical about his chances of making the All-Star game for the first time.

He sure played like he deserves to go.

Smith scored 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in his final game before the All-Star reserves are announced, leading the Hawks to a 97-87 victory over the Indiana Pacers that snapped Atlanta's three-game home losing streak Wednesday night.

The Hawks, who had fallen behind by big margins in each game on the homestand, finally got off to a good start. Atlanta built a 21-point lead in the first half and withstood repeated runs by Indiana over the final two quarters.

Smith made sure of that.

"We've got to play with urgency and desperation as a team," he said. "Tonight, it definitely showed. We had to get a win before we go out on the road."

Joe Johnson added 20 points for the Hawks, while Kirk Hinrich (17) and Tracy McGrady (13) contributed valuable minutes off the bench. But this night belonged to Smith, who has stepped up his game with All-Star center Al Horford expected to miss most of the season with an injury. Smith is averaging 15.6 points and 8.9 rebounds a game, numbers that may finally be good enough to land an All-Star nod of his own.

Not that he's confident of his chances heading into Thursday's announcement.

"I thought I've deserved it two years in a row," Smith said. "I'm not going to get my hopes up until I see how it goes."

Danny Granger scored 21 points to lead the Pacers, who couldn't overcome the big deficit after winning the night before at home. Indiana has lost nine straight in Atlanta, a streak dating to 2006.

The Hawks hit enough shots to hold off the Pacers. With Indiana closing, Hinrich swished a 3-pointer, then Smith slammed in a rebound with his left hand after Marvin Williams missed a jumper, leaving the rim shaking and the crowd roaring.

"Josh played super," Hawks coach Larry Drew said. "He doesn't get the credit he deserves. He makes an impact at both ends of the court."

David West and Tyler Hansbrough added 15 points apiece for Indiana, while Roy Hibbert had 10 points and 10 rebounds. But the Hawks, with only one true healthy center on the roster, outrebounded the Pacers 45-33. Atlanta also won the running game, finishing with a 28-11 edge in fast-break points.

"Give Atlanta a lot of credit," Indiana coach Frank Vogel said. "They came out, obviously having lost three in a row, with a tremendous edge and took the fight to us in the first half."

Right from the tip, the Hawks raced to an 8-1 lead and stretched the margin to double figures before the game was 7 minutes old, moving the ball and hustling on defense like they did before their recent slide.

The biggest cheers went up when lumbering center Zaza Pachulia came up with an offensive rebound, then flipped a no-look, behind-the-back pass to Williams for a dunk.

The reaction was much different when Jeff Teague drove toward the basket, only to get sent tumbling to the floor when he ran into Hansbrough. The officials called an offensive foul on Ivan Johnson, ruling that he caused Hansbrough to stumble into Teague. Johnson was whistled for a technical when he disputed the call, while Teague got up slowly after a nasty fall, hurting but not seriously injured.

Atlanta had its biggest lead in the final minute of the first half before West buried a 3-pointer at the buzzer, leaving the Pacers with a 59-41 deficit. It was too much of a margin to overcome for a team making a quick turnaround after beating Utah 24 hours earlier.

"We fought like dogs in the second half to come back and compete and make it a game, but they were too much," Vogel said. "Their starting lineup, Josh Smith and Joe Johnson, were too much. And obviously Hinrich and Tracy McGrady scoring 30 points off the bench gave them a tremendous lift. You're not going to win games giving up 28 fast-break points, period."

After his nifty play early on, Pachulia had some ugly moments toward the end.

First, he missed a dunk after Smith flopped to the court to retrieve a loose ball and flipped a pass forward to his center, lumbering all alone in front of everyone else. Then, apparently losing track of where he was on a fast break, Pachulia took a pass and seemed ready to go in for another dunk attempt, only to realize he was too far from the hoop. He was called for walking instead.

Notes: NBA commissioner David Stern attended the game, stopping off in Atlanta after making the announcement that the 2013 All-Star Game will be held in Houston. Stern expressed confidence in the Hawks' ownership group, which tried to sell the team last summer, saying they are "way down my list of current worries." ... McGrady nearly squared off with Indiana's Lou Amundson after slamming into the Pacers player going for a rebound. They jawed at each other but their teammates stepped in quickly to pull them away from each other. Both received technicals. ... Drew barked at Josh Tiven even after the official called a foul on Indiana, apparently because he didn't blow the whistle soon enough to the coach's liking. Another official, Eric Lewis, stepped in to ask Drew, "Why are you getting on him like that when you got the call?"

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Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

Notebook: Hawks 97, Pacers 87

Posted Wednesday February 8, 2012 10:57PM

By Matt Winkeljohn, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: The Hawks re-discovered their defense, Josh Smith was superb and Kirk Hinrich finally found his stroke Wednesday as the reserve guard scored a season-high 17 points to help Atlanta snap a three-game losing streak with a 97-87 win over the visiting Pacers.

Smith had 28 points, 12 rebounds, five steals, three assists and three blocks to break a slump of his own, but Hinrich was the difference maker. He entered the game having made shooting 31.4 percent in seven games since returning from shoulder surgery. He made 7-for-9 shots and 3-for-5 3-pointers.

Atlanta (17-9) had allowed shooting percentages of 48.2, 50.0 and a season-worst 51.9 in losing to Memphis, Philadelphia and Phoenix in Philips Arena, but the Pacers (17-8) shot 40 percent (22-for-55) in quarters other than the third (11-for-20) and 44 percent overall (33-for-75).

Atlanta sqaundered away much of a 59-41 halftime lead with a poor third quarter, where the Pacers pulled within 75-69. Indiana was as close as seven points early in the fourth, but after bringing a 10-5 road record into the game, Indiana fell for the ninth straight time in Atlanta dating back to Dec. 22, 2006.

Danny Granger scored 21 points for Indiana, and David West and reserve forward Tyler Hansbrough added 15 each.

QUOTABLE: "We're like night and day different when we play with energy. When we play with energy, we're just a totally different team. [Smith] played just super. I don't think he gets the credit he deserves for what he brings to the table. He is a guy who can impact it on both ends. He played a lot of minutes (46:01) . . . he was absolutely unbelievable tonight."
-- Hawks coach Larry Drew.

THE STAT: In jumping out to as much as a 16-point lead in the first quarter, the Hawks scored 14 fastbreak points and had eight assists -- both stark upgrades from their three-game swoon. On the evening, Atlanta outscored Indiana 14-3 on the break. The margin was 28-11 by game's end.

MORE STATS: The Hawks are 12-1 when Joe Johnson scores 20 points or more (he had 20), and 7-1 when he has five or more assists (he had eight to tie a season high). . . . Atlanta is 6-0 when Smith scores 20 or more, and 12-0 when making at least 45 percent of its shots (46.1 percent, 35-for-76 shooting).

TURNING POINT: There was no turning point as the Pacers' only lead came when Paul George made a free throw for a 1-0 lead, but the difference between Wednesday's Hawks and the outfit that lost the previous three games -- all at home -- was evident in a first-quarter sequence.

When Indiana center Roy Hibbert went up for a dunk, Hawks center Zaza Pachulia blocked the attempt, Hinrich plucked the loose ball, and just a few seconds later Joe Johnson got up a 3-point shot.

He missed, but Pachulia had hustled down court to grab the offensive rebound (Atlanta won the battle of the boards 45-33). He made a no-look bounce pass across the lane to Marvin Williams, who dunked for a 24-12 lead with 4:24 left in the first quarter.

QUOTABLE II: "[The Hawks] came out tonight with a tremendous edge about them, and they took the fight to us in the first half. We dug too big a hole for ourselves."
-- Pacers coach Frank Vogel.

HOT: Hinrich made 4-for-5 shots for nine points in the first quarter, when he played just 7:57 in part because starting point guard Jeff Teague picked up two fouls in the first 4:03. . . . West made all four of his shots in the second quarter, including a trey, for nine points.

NOT: Hawks small forward Marvin Williams turned in his fourth straight single-digit scoring night. After making 2-for-7 shots for five points, he's averaged 7.5 points in that span. . . . Indiana's Paul George turned in his least productive game in some time with five points on 1-for-8 shooting. He missed all three 3-point attempts, and had just three rebounds and one assist.

NOTABLE: Atlanta starters Smith (46:01), Johnson (43:59) and Pachulia (38:18) played heavy minutes, and Drew did not dip into his bench much other than in going to Hinrich (22:24) and Tracy McGrady (21:53). McGrady played as well as in weeks, pitching in 13 points, two rebounds and two assists. ... Hawks subs Ivan Johnson (9:42), Willie Green (7:22) and Vladimir Radmanovic(1:59) were scoreless in a total of 19:03. ... Joe Johnson needs 39 points to become the seventh Hawk to reach 10,000 career points. ... The Pacers are 1-8 when scoring 89 or fewer points. ... Indiana is 2-12 when its bench is out-scored (Atlanta subs out-scored the Pacers' reserves 30-27 with Hinrich and McGrady doing all the scoring for the Hawks). ... With centers Al Horford (torn pectoral muscle) and Jason Collins (sprained elbow) shelved, Drew said he hopes that the Hawks will add a big man to the roster within a few days. He did not suggest whom it might be, or whether the player would sign a 10-day contract or for the rest of the season.

UP NEXT: For the Pacers, Friday @ Memphis, Saturday vs. Denver, Tuesday vs. Miami. For the Hawks, Friday @ Orlando, Sunday vs. Miami, Tuesday @ L.A. Lakers.

• Pacers: --
• Hawks: Horford

• Pacers: Amundson
• Hawks: Johnson, McGrady

• Lead Changes: 1
• Times Tied: 2

• Arena: Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA
• Officials: #55 Bill Kennedy, #42 Eric Lewis, #58 Josh Tiven
• Attendance: 16288
• Duration: 2:13