By Chris Denari
FOXSportsIndiana.com
January 13, 2011
Often times in basketball, winning games is as simple as putting the ball in the basket. For the Indiana Pacers, that's held true with back-to-back wins against Philadelphia and Dallas.
Putting the ball in the basket happened rather infrequently in the nine preceding games as Indiana failed to score 100 points and shot just 39% from the field. That changed Tuesday night in the 111-103 win at Philadelphia and continued on Wednesday when the Pacers knocked out Dallas 102-89 at Conseco Fieldhouse.
The Pacers shot 50% or better for the fifth time this season when they shot 51% at Philly, including 8-16 from three-point range. They flirted with another 50% night against the Mavericks, but finished with a respectable 45%.
Playing perhaps his best basketball of the season, Darren Collison seems more free running the show for the Pacers. He is a scoring point guard, and when he attacks the basket he is at his best. He displayed that in Philadelphia with his first double-double of the season. He hit his former UCLA teammate Jrue Holiday for 21 points and 13 assists and controlled the game from the start. Against veteran Jason Kidd and Dallas, Collison continued his solid play with a 17-point, five assist outing.
Collison's ability to score and create has helped his teammates. In the last two games, it seems there have been far fewer challenged shots. Danny Granger and Mike Dunleavy benefited at Philadelphia and against Dallas, it was the duo of Brandon Rush and rookie Paul George. Collison's ability to run the pick and roll has also complimented Tyler Hansbrough, a starter at power forward in the last four games. Hansbrough has hit the mid-range jump shot and is averaging 12.8 points while shooting 51% as a starter.
While the shooting has improved, I think the overall resolve has been impressive. A 16-point lead in Philadelphia quickly turned into a five-point fourth quarter deficit, but the Pacers rallied back for the win. After blowing a second-half lead last Friday at home against San Antonio, the Pacers made sure they shut the door on another Western Conference power after leading the entire second half against Dallas. Yes, the Mavericks played without Dirk Nowitzki, but nobody feels sorry for injuries in the NBA. Every team plays without somebody at some point in the season, and the Pacers' win was definitely a step in the right direction ahead of Friday's game against Chicago and next week's four-game Western Conference road trip.
Now let's see if the Pacers can make it three straight wins, something that hasn't happened this year. It's amazing how players' confidence and a broadcaster's confidence in them can change so quickly. A nice combination of veteran guile and youthful exuberance has given this team a boost when things looked a little lost earlier in the week. But that's the NBA. Let's hope this group can hold on to that combination as the halfway point of the season hits next week.
