Culture of Hoops

Pacers Squeak Past Suns, Again

Image courtesy of Erik Drost/Flickr.

Image courtesy of Erik Drost/Flickr.

The Indiana Pacers defeated the Phoenix Suns 97-94 Tuesday night. In a game in which the Pacers almost blew another huge lead, it was good to see them take care of business. The Pacers were up 20 at one point in the third, but the Suns caught fire and stormed all the way back to cut the game to three. Phoenix had lost four in a row coming into the game, and 13 of their last 14.

Indiana was once again without George Hill and Rodney Stuckey. Stuckey missed his fourth straight game with the ankle injury, while George Hill missed his second straight game due to unspecified personal reasons. Ian Mahinmi left the game in the first half with an injury, while Markieff Morris and Mirza Teletovic went down for Phoenix during the game as well.

The Pacers were outrebounded (per usual) on both the offensive and defensive glass. A key stat from the game for the Pacers was turnovers. The Pacers only had 14, while the Suns had 22. Indiana also won the paint battle, even without Ian Mahinmi. Myles Turner played the bulk of his minutes throughout the game.

Myles Turner scored 15 points, making it the second straight game with at least 15 points. Fellow rookie, Joe Young, scored 11 points and had five assists as well. Glenn Robinson III started the game and scored 10 points on 75 percent shooting. Paul George and Monta Ellis dropped a combined 39 points.

On the other side of the ball, Devin Booker scored a career-high 32 points. It was the season high by any rookie. Booker hit six threes and all eight of his free throws. Brandon Knight added 21 points and P.J. Tucker had 12.

Phoenix hosts the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday evening,  while the Pacers will have a nice little break before traveling to Golden State to face the Warriors on Friday, marking the second and final matchup of the season between the two.

The win now puts the Pacers at a 23-19 record.

Pacers 97

(23-19, 10-13 away)

Suns 94

(13-30, 9-12 home)

Coverage: FSAZ

9:00 PM ET, January 19, 2016

Talking Stick Resort Arena, Phoenix, AZ

1 2 3 4 T
IND 25 19 27 26 97
PHX 17 18 26 33 94

Top Performers

Ind: P. George 19 Pts, 8 Reb, 4 Ast, 4 Stl

PHX: D. Booker 32 Pts, 2 Ast

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