George Hill, Pacers beat Pelicans, 96-84
The Indiana Pacers shot 39-78 (50.0%) from the field and turned it over on only nine possessions, in a 96-84 win over the New Orleans Pelicans. Indiana (10-19) has won just three of their last 10 games.
George Hill came off the bench and put up 15 points on 5-8 shooting, including 2-3 on 3-point attempts, in what was an efficient performance. Other key players for Indiana included Roy Hibbert with 14 points and seven blocks, David West with 13 points and seven rebounds, and C.J. Miles with 11 points and six rebounds. Despite the loss, Anthony Davis scored 21 points for New Orleans on 8-18 shooting from the field and 5-6 from the free throw line. He also added nine rebounds. Tyreke Evans contributed 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Surprisingly, despite committing the fifth-fewest errors in the NBA (TO% of 12.2%), the Pelicans struggled with 15 turnovers against a Pacers defense that forces the fifth-fewest (opponents' TO% of 12.6%). The Pacers posted a sterling assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.67. This year, they are 1-1 when they exceed 2.50 in this metric. Conversely, the Pelicans are 2-4 when allowing their opponents to achieve such a stellar ratio.
New Orleans (14-14) couldn't get consecutive victories after beating Oklahoma City on Sunday.
Coming up, the Pacers take on the Detroit Pistons, who are 5-23 on the season. The Pelicans go up against the San Antonio Spurs, currently sitting at 18-11 this year. The Pelicans have a 1-0 record against San Antonio this season.
