INDIANAPOLIS, IN -- The Indiana Pacers' preseason record improved to 3-1, following a victory against the Detroit Pistons, 101-97, in Indianapolis, Indiana. Paul George provided the team with early offense in the first quarter, but the rest of the offense was carried by George Hill, Toney Douglas, and Glenn Robinson.

George Hill had a successful return from his ankle injury. In fact, he played his best game of the preseason. Hill scored 14 points, shot 5 of 9 from the field, shot 1 of 2 from three, shot 3 for 3 from the free-throw line, grabbed two rebounds, three steals, one block, but had 3 turnovers.

The Pacers managed to remain close and eventually pulled out a win against the Pistons' key players, which was impressive considering the following; Paul George played for just the whole first quarter (12 minutes), George Hill sat out of the fourth quarter (20 minutes), Ian Mahinmi earned rest (13 minutes), and Monta Ellis didn't play much (14 minutes).

This game was close throughout the entire game. Indiana led 27-24 at the end of the first quarter, led 52-48 at the half, then Detroit led 74-73 at the end of the third, the game was tied 82-82 at the eight-minute mark in the fourth quarter, the game was tied 93-93 with 3:28 left in the game, and the Pacers managed to win the game, 101-97.

Toney Douglas was regarded as the "spark-plug" for the Pacers' offense in clutch time. Douglas scored the Pacers' first nine points in the final quarter. Douglas also led the Pacers in points with 15 on the night. It was a great game for Douglas to prove why he deserves a spot on the team's final roster.

Frank Vogel on Toney Douglas's performance:

"He played really well. He's a good veteran voice in the locker room and has a good skill with his defensive presence."

Toney Douglas on his performance, and what he brings to the team:

"It felt good. Anytime I'm out on the floor, I'm going to produce on both ends, defense and offense."

Glenn Robinson was a key component of the team's win as well. Robinson scored 13 points, shot 5 of 6 from the field, and turned the ball over just once. Robinson made the most of his minutes with Solomon Hill missing the game.

Glenn Robinson on his performance:

"I think teams are starting to run out at me and trying not to let me take that three. I just had some driving opportunities this game. And defensively, just staying aggressive, that's what's going to get me on the court."

Frank Vogel on the overall execution of the young players:

"I was very proud of our young guys tonight. They had a great fourth quarter performance."

The Pistons used their key players for almost their regular amounts. Andre Drummond had 17 points and 21 rebounds, Reggie Jackson had 17 points, and Ersan Ilyasova had 17 points. Detroit just simply couldn't get enough offensive execution from their role players, which resulted in the loss.

The Pacers had the following quality stats as a team; 101 PTS, 40-85 (47.1%) FGM-A, 16-18 (88.9%) FTM-A, 16 AST, 10 OREB 14 TO, 8 STL, 8 BLK. The Pacers also had 46 points in the paint. Indiana struggled in the following areas; 5-20 (25%) 3PTM-A, 40 REB, and 30 DREB. The Pacers only had six fast break points. Solomon Hill, Joseph Young, C.J. Miles, and Kadeem Jack were inactive for this game.

The Indiana Pacers will have their next game televised as they are playing the Cleveland Cavaliers. Tip-off for this game is at 7:00 PM EST on October 15th. This game will be at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.

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About the author
Grant Afseth
Indianapolis sports fan living in Dallas, Texas.