INDIANAPOLIS – They are in the exact spot they wanted, yet they are not.
Many expected a Pacers team that earned a No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference for the first time in ten years would be a dominant force that would instill confidence in rooters that they were a strong NBA championship contender.
In some ways that is still the case, but a late season slump has rattled some of the faith that was in this team around the All-Star break. Plus a 19-point loss to first round opponent Atlanta just two weeks earlier had some weary of the Hawks’ ability to spring the upset.
Those fears by fans and maybe the players were realized on Saturday evening, when the Pacers ran into another Atlanta team looking to show they are better than an eighth seed. The Hawks dominated the second half in route to a 101-93 victory and a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.
Game 2 will be played on Tuesday night at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
“We didn’t play nearly well enough to beat this basketball team on either end of the court,” said head coach Frank Vogel. “We’ve got to do a better job. We’ve got to bounce back in round 2.”
Indianapolis native Jeff Teague led all scorers with 28 points while Paul Millsap had 25 for the Hawks who win their first game in the playoffs in Indianapolis since 1996. Paul George countered with 24 points for the Pacers along with a team-high ten rebounds.
The third quarter proved the difference in the game as the Atlanta outscored Indiana 30-18. The Hawks would open up as much as a 20-point lead before a quick run to end the game made the score the end result a bit closer.
Things were not very positive early when the Hawks had a strong first quarter run. Led by Indianapolis native Jeff Teague’s layup, Atlanta jumped out to a quick 18-9 lead and pushed it back up to a nine-point advantage on a Shelvin Mack three with four seconds in the quarter. Indiana got a bit of a boost when C.J. Watson beat the first quarter buzzer with a three-pointer, but the Pacers still trailed by six after one.
Behind Lance Stephenson and Paul George, the home team was finally able to find some rhythm in the second quarter. George’s jumper with 1:49 to go in the half gave the Pacers a six-point lead, but back came the Hawks again. Kyle Korver’s putback at the buzzer capped a quick 7-1 Atlanta run to tie the game at 50 going into the break.
After halftime, the game belonged to Atlanta as Millsap and Teague began to showcase their talents. The latter went for 14 points in the quarter while the former had 13, including a three-pointer with 1:47 to go in the go that pushed the lead to 18 points and the Pacers were never able to recover.
Eventually the Hawks would get the lead to 20 points and only a 15-3 run in the closing minutes of the game made the score look respectable in a playoff opener which everyone feared.