Pacers end six-game skid with victory at Verizon
The struggling Indiana Pacers found the cure for their December woes Monday at Verizon Center — the indifferent play of the Wizards.
When » Wednesday, 7:30 p.m.
Where » The Palace of Auburn Hills
TV/Radio » CSN/980 AM
» After losing at Verizon Center last Tuesday, Detroit (13-9) beat Indiana and Charlotte, both by four points, on Friday and Saturday. New PG Rodney Stuckey had 34 points and 18 assists in the two games and appears to have found chemistry with SG Allen Iverson (37 points, 15 assists) and SF Richard Hamilton (46 points). Both shifted up a slot to accommodate Stuckey’s insertion into the starting lineup. The teams have split their two meetings this year, both winning on their home court.
Offering little resistance on defense or the boards, Washington made things easy for Indiana, who broke their six-game losing streak with a 118-98 victory before 14,502.
Penetrating the lane at will and dominating the offensive glass, the Pacers had their way with the Wizards, matching their season-high and establishing their largest victory margin. Danny Granger (27 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals), Marquis Daniels (20 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists) and T.J. Ford (16 points, 5 assists) were the latest recipients of the Wizards’ generosity.
“Our defense is killing us,” said Antawn Jamison. “It seemed like we were on roller skates all night – moving from one side to the other side – we were trying to figure out what was going on.”
Indiana (8-16) blew a 15-point second half lead, but quickly regained control with an 11-0 run, which bridged the final two periods. Reserve guard Jarrett Jack (16 points) fueled the spurt with a 3-pointer and a breakaway layup.
“Two plays by them, where they got run-out layups, let the whole air out,” said Wizards interim coach Ed Tapscott. “We got a little fatigued. We got a little disappointed. And it just snowballed from there.”
It was the third straight decisive loss for the Wizards (4-18), who have matched their worst start in franchise history. The last Washington team to begin 4-18 was Leonard Hamilton’s 2000-01 crew, which finished 19-63 en route to the No. 1 pick in the 2001 draft (Kwame Brown).
“It’s embarrassing when you get booed in front of your crowd at home,” said Jamison.
Andray Blatche replaced rookie JaVale McGee at center and turned in a solid effort on offense (19 points). But his two rebounds in 32 minutes spoke volumes about the Wizards’ lack of presence inside.
“I don’t feel like I gave 110 percent effort,” said Blatche. “Rebounding is just effort. I didn’t rebound. I didn’t give that much effort.”
Pacers Troy Murphy (8 points, 12 rebounds) and Jeff Foster (9 points, 11 rebounds) found easy pickings on the glass as Indiana out-rebounded Washington, 55-41. The Wizards yielded a season-high 23 offensive rebounds, which led to 18 second-chance points.
“You haven’t made a stop defensively until you’ve procured the ball,” said Tapscott. “We had theoretically a good stop on a number of occasions and couldn’t come up with the ball. There will be a number of box-out drills at tomorrow’s practice.”
The Wizards made a promising run in the third period behind mainstays Caron Butler (26 points, 8 rebounds) and Jamison (26 points, 15 rebounds). Washington scored on 22 of 27 possessions to tie it. But the run seemed to take something out of the Wizards’ starters, who got little help from the reserves.
Resurgent forward Darius Songaila (8 points) hit all four of his shots, but the rest of the bench combined to hit just 1 of 14 from the floor. The Wizards backcourt continued to struggle, making just 5 of 23 shots.
But the Wizards’ problems extend well beyond shooting.
“I’ve been in this locker room for four years. This is the worst it’s been for us,” said Blatche. “The difference is we always had effort. We always had guys that wanted to do things the right way to get things done. We have to step up and put out more effort than we’ve ever done in our career.”
Notes » Said Tapscott of his switch from McGee to Blatche at center: “We really want to be solid in that first quarter, hopefully not have to play from behind. I want to give him a chance to see some more of the game before he goes in there.” … Etan Thomas was on medical leave. He traveled to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Sunday for a routine heart checkup. He had surgery to repair an aortic valve in October 2007.
