Pacers' Struggle Against Zone Leads to Loss

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Pacers' struggle against zone leads to loss

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Pacers forward David West maneuvers against the Hawks' Al Horford. West and his teammates flailed in the fourth quarter. / Kevin Liles / US PRESSWIRE

Written by Mike Wells ATLANTA -- Ouch! This one is going to sting for a while.

There's no other way to put it in the wake of the FILED UNDER Indiana Pacers completely collapsing against the Atlanta Hawks . Indianapolis Sports Indiana Pacers Danny Granger In a matter of minutes, the Pacers went from playing their best basketball all season to a shambles.

They went ice cold from the field because they again failed to figure out a zone defense.

The Pacers blew a 14-point lead, scoring nine points in the final quarter of their 89-86 loss to the Hawks at Philips Arena.

The Pacers could have won there for the first time in more than six years, but instead they added more pain to Buy Pacers Tickets the news that leading scorer Danny Granger (knee) will be out for at least three months. Up next: Pacers at Timberwolves 8 p.m. Friday; Fox Sports Indiana. They sat in the locker room stunned and shook up. Related Links

Pacers Insider: Bench can become a factor whenever Normally energetic coach Frank Vogel was they're ready brief with his postgame answers and had a With Danny Granger out three months, Pacers will have to regroup look of disbelief.

Hawks 89, Pacers 86 "We broke down," Pacers guard George Hill said. "Everybody did. It starts with holding ADS BY PULSE 360 AdChoices everybody accountable. We have to figure 1 Shocking Tip To Kill Belly Fat out what we can do to be a better team Celebrity Doctor Uncovers 1 Simple Trick To A Flat offensively and defensively." Stomach. Read More... The NBA is a copycat league. The Charlotte Atlanta Mom Makes Botox Doctors Angry Bobcats locked the Pacers up with a zone Mom Reveals Clever $5 Wrinkle Therapy That Makes Botox Doctors Furious defense last week . SmartConsumerLiving.com

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2.00% Georgia Mortgage Rates The Pacers, led by Hill and David West, $150K Mortgage $581mo. 2.20%APR. Get a Free Quote Now! closed the third quarter on a 19-3 run to take Get details... a 12-point lead.

But that's when Hawks coach Larry Drew put a halt to the Pacers' momentum by switching to a zone defense.

That meant Lance Stephenson was no longer effective offensively. Hill couldn't make the Hawks' guards pay for going underneath screens by making 3-pointers. West vanished offensively.

The Pacers went 4-of-19 from the field, scored nine points and got a combined two points from Hill and West in the fourth quarter.

"Atlanta did exactly what Charlotte did to us," West said. "We struggled to score. We have to find ways to score. We can't be settling and let them dictate what we do offensively."

Vogel has to come up with a better offense against zones because Indiana will see more of them.

While the Pacers buckled offensively, the Hawks quit bickering to the officials and woke up largely thanks to Kyle Korver and former Pike High School star Jeff Teague picking on Stephenson.

Korver, a Pacers nemesis throughout his career, ran Stephenson, who is a weak defender, through countless screens to get open.

He scored eight straight points for Atlanta to get them to within 83- 82 with 3:14 left.

The lack of depth and faith in the bench became even more evident when Vogel couldn't take out the struggling Stephenson.

Vogel rolled the dice by putting Hill on Korver and Stephenson on the lightning-quick Teague. Hill did his job, but Stephenson had no chance against Teague.

Teague put them up for good with a 3-pointer and a floater to make it 87-83 with 32.7 seconds left.

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The Pacers scored three points in the final 6 minutes, 34 seconds. They went 1-of-10 from the field and turned over the ball three times in that stretch.

"We had the lineup on the floor that gave us the best chance to win," Vogel said about his decision to stick with Stephenson. "... We struggled to score down the stretch, competed our tails off. It wasn't enough."

• MORE COVERAGE: Indiana Pacers page. • BLOG: Mike Wells: Pacers Insider. • BLOG: Indy Sports Day.

Call Star reporter Mike Wells at (317) 444-6053 or email [email protected] .

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