The Indiana Pacers and Denver Nuggets will square off for the second and final time this season tonight at 7 P.M. in Indianapolis. The last time these two teams left, the Pacers came just short of beating the Nuggets in Denver, as the Pacers fell 129-126. The Pacers will look to split the season series with the Denver Nuggets. The Indiana Pacers struggle to close out games as of late really cost them that game, as the Denver Nuggets were able to put up 45 points in the 4th quarter to help boost them to the win. However, the Pacers were without some key starters in that game.
Ian Mahinmi, (ankle) and George Hill (personal reasons) both missed that game. Myles Turner (25 points), and Monta Ellis led the shorthanded Pacers in scoring, while Danillo Gallanari (23 points), and Will Barton (21 points) led Denver in scoring. The most important stat for Barton in that game however, was scoring 15 points in the 4th quarter itself, led by an amazing highlight reel 360 layup.
That win for Denver extended their streak of seven straight home game victories against Indiana. The Pacers defense will really have to be solid tonight, as Denver showed in the last matchup, they have many players that can put up points in a hurry. In general, the defense needs to simply just be aggressive.
In the last matchup, Denver had a 45 point quarter, and put up 129 points on what normally is a very good Pacers defense.The defense did force 18 turnovers in that last matchup, they will need to match that, if not force more if they want to be sharp on the defensive end tonight. What might be the biggest key to the game for the Pacers, is how many points they allow. When allowing under 100, the Pacers are at their best and have a great shot at winning, stats show.
The Pacers will need their new starting lineup, now consisting of Myles Turner at power forward instead of Lavoy Allen, to get them off to a good start in the game. In the last meeting, the Pacers had an amazing first half, putting 66 points on the board. It will help the Pacers to only have one injury going in to the game on Saturday, which is Rodney Stuckey.
Projected Starters
Nuggets: PG: Emmanuel Mudiay, SG: Gary Harris, SF: Danillo Gallanari, PF: Kenneth Faried, C: Nikola Jukic.
Pacers: PG: George Hill, SG: Monta Ellis, SF: Paul George, PF: Myles Turner, C: Ian Mahinmi.
Injuries
Nuggets: Nikola Jukic- questionable (right knee), Darrell Arthur- questionable (left quad), Joffery Lauvergne- (right toe), Jameer Nelson- (left wrist), Wilson Chandler- (right hip).
Pacers: Rodney Stuckey- (right foot).