Pacers pull away from Pistons
INDIANAPOLIS -- Paul George scored 21 points, Thaddeus Young had 18 points and eight rebounds and CJ Miles added 15 points Wednesday night, and the Indiana Pacers pulled away from the Detroit Pistons 115-98.
With the victory, Indiana (33-31) avoided slipping to .500 and completed a four-game season series sweep from Detroit (31-33). The Pacers were coming off a 2-3 road trip during which they lost at Miami, San Antonio and Charlotte while winning at Houston and Atlanta.
Indiana now has a two-game lead on Detroit for the No. 6 playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Tobias Harris came off the bench to score 22 for the Pistons, and Andre Drummond had 14 points and 15 rebounds. Stanley Johnson had 17 points in a reserve role.
Indiana shot 50 percent (44 of 88), and Detroit shot 43.8 (39 of 89). The Pacers outrebounded the Pistons, 46-45. Monta Ellis added 12 points for Indiana, Glenn Robinson III had 11 and Jeff Teague scored 10.
Indiana fell behind briefly 63-62 in the third quarter before finishing the period on a 28-10 run, getting a 13-point third quarter from George and six points from Miles. The Pacers shot 52.9 percent in the pivotal period and were 10 of 10 from the free throw line.
Indiana shot 52.2 percent from the field during the first half (24 of 46) and made only two turnovers in building a 58-50 lead, getting 12 points from Young, nine from Miles on three 3-pointers and eight points and five rebounds from George.
Harris came off the bench for 18 first-half points to keep the Pistons within striking distance. Detroit shot 42.6 percent during the first two quarters (20 of 47).
The Pacers scored the game's first eight points, limited the Pistons to 32 percent first-quarter shooting and led 30-23 through 12 minutes during which Indiana had a 12-point cushion at one point.
NOTES: Detroit's starting five of F Marcus Morris, F Jon Leuer, C Andre Drimmond, G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and G Reggie Jackson were a collective 2 of 13 from the field and scored only seven points during the first quarter ... Wednesday's game began an 11-game stretch during which the Pacers play seven times in 20 days in Bankers Life Fieldhouse ... With the victory, Indiana swept the four-game season series from Detroit, winning the first three by a combined 41 points ... The Pacers are 16-2 against the Pacers in the 18 most recent games played in Indianapolis ... Indiana improved to 23-7 this season when leading at halftime ... Pacer F Lavoy Allen was listed as questionable with a sore left knee but did see limited action.