Pacers surge in second half to blow out Nets 103-86

Photo credit: Jim McIsaac

With the big news being that Brook Lopez is going to miss the rest of the season with his third broken foot in three years, the Nets had to face possibly the best team in the NBA, the Indiana Pacers. With no Lopez, all the Nets' big men had to step up and try to fill in that 20 point void left by Brook, and they had to do it against 7'2" Roy Hibbert in the paint. The task was too great for the Nets, as they fell to the Pacers 103-86.

The first quarter didn't start off the way anyone expected as the Nets were the team to come out with a high energy level. When the Nets have six fast break points in a quarter, never mind a full game, good things are happening. Those good things soon turned into ugly things as the Nets started to play sloppy basketball and couldn't buy a shot. They finished the quarter shooting 33.3% from the floor after jumping out to a quick 16-10 lead. Indiana outscored them 19-17 in the first. 

If anyone thought the first quarter was ugly, it's impossible to describe the second quarter. The defense for Brooklyn wasn't the main issue in the first half, surprisingly. They held Indiana to 45 first half points, but were only able to put up 39 themselves. The guys that were needed to step up with Brook Lopez out for the year didn't to start the game. Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett shot a combined 2/13 from the field, and neither looked comfortable on the court in the half. 

If there was one thing about the first half that made it a no-contest for Indiana, it's that the Nets were far too hesitant to attack Roy Hibbert without Brook Lopez. The team was limited to mostly jump shots and if the shots aren't falling, there is no chance for any success. 

There are no words to describe what happened in the third quarter. To say it was a typical Nets' third quarter would be an understatement. Indiana destroyed the Nets in every aspect and outscored them 30-19 in the quarter. Paul Pierce was ejected mid-quarter for a flagrant-2 foul on George Hill, which pretty much summed up the game. With Mirza Teletovic being the only exception, the Nets played with absolutely no heart and no energy in the third. 

By the time the fourth quarter arrived, the game was pretty much already over. The Nets wanted nothing to do with Indiana, and they made that quite obvious throughout the entire game. Paul George and Lance Stephenson were a problem all night for the Nets, but in the fourth quarter they were the cause of multiple Brooklyn turnovers leading to fast break points.

Joe Johnson led the Nets with 17 points on 7/13 shooting. Kevin Garnett put up 12 points and grabbed five rebounds. Andray Blatche added 11 points and seven rebounds. Jason Terry, in his first game since November 20th, put up 11 points on 4/7 shooting. For the Pacers, Paul George and Lance Stephenson each put up 26 points on combined 20/35 shooting. Stephenson also grabbed seven rebounds while Paul George grabbed six. 

Final Score: 103-86 Pacers
Most Disappointing Stat of The Game: Nets 6/26 from three point
Promising Stat of The Game: No.
Scariest Moment of the Game: Paul Pierce hitting George Hill for a flagrant-2
Best Moment of The Game: Deron Williams first quarter alley-oop to Mirza Teletovic

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