Pacers at Suns
The Phoenix Suns aren't shining very brightly and attempt to register a
win for only the second time in 15 games when they host the Indiana
Pacers on Tuesday. Phoenix hit another low point Sunday when the
Minnesota Timberwolves broke a nine-game losing streak by pounding the
Suns 117-87.
Phoenix coach Jeff Hornacek is on a short leash due to his team's collapse and he was irate with the defensive effort after Sunday's drubbing. "These guys can call themselves basketball players but until you go out there and you try to stop somebody and get in front of somebody and take a charge or do something," Hornacek told reporters. "We got one, two guys maybe on this team that do that. It is what it is." Indiana coach Frank Vogel also was dismayed over defensive issues after his team fell 129-126 to the Denver Nuggets on Sunday for its fourth loss in five games. "When this team decides to start defending again, then we will start winning again," Vogel told reporters. "Our defense was an embarrassment. We have to toughen up, we have to start hitting people on the glass, we have to be first to the rebound and we have to stop giving teams second-chance shots."
TV: 9 p.m. ET, FSN Indiana, FSN Arizona
ABOUT THE PACERS (22-19): Rookie power forward/center Myles Turner might be on the verge of earning more playing time after erupting for a season-best 25 points on 11-of-13 shooting in the loss to Denver. Turner received 29 minutes against the Nuggets due to the absence of starting center Ian Mahinmi (heel), which prompted Jordan Hill to move into the starting lineup and provided increased action for Turner. The splurge increased his scoring average to 6.9 and Turner also collected seven rebounds and two blocked shots.
ABOUT THE SUNS (13-29): The unraveling of the season picked up steam when standout guard Eric Bledsoe suffered a season-ending knee injury and the team has been unable to right itself. The 30-point loss to struggling Minnesota marked the sixth time in the past 16 games that Phoenix lost by 20 or more points - and there also was a 19-point defeat against the Pacers on Jan. 12. "With us being undermanned and not having everybody available, for us, guys have to play harder than what they usually would," point guard Brandon Knight told reporters. "I don't think it's really there right now and we just have to be professionals and do a better job of that."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Pacers have lost in 12 of their last 15 visits to Phoenix.
2. The Suns are 0-18 when scoring fewer than 100 points.
3. Indiana PG George Hill (personal reasons) will likely sit out his second consecutive game.