Pacers at 76ers
The Indiana Pacers find themselves battling for an Eastern Conference
playoff spot and strive to break out of a mini-funk when they visit the
Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday. Indiana holds the last playoff berth by
one game over the ninth-place Chicago Bulls but has lost three of its
last four games, including a dreadful 114-94 home loss against the
Orlando Magic on Thursday.
The Pacers figured to not have to sweat out the final two-plus weeks for a playoff spot but that has become the reality and All-Star forward Paul George expects things to turn around. "We're not broken," George told reporters. "This is the team's first year together and we're going to have our bumps and bruises. We're going to have to grow and learn to guide this ship as we go. But we're together and that's the best thing about this situation." The 76ers have lost 11 consecutive games after falling 100-91 to the Charlotte Hornets on Friday and are still trying to record their 10th win of the campaign. Philadelphia is experiencing its worst season since the 1972-73 squad went 9-73, which stands as the worst record in NBA history over an 82-game season.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Indiana, CSN Philadelphia
ABOUT THE PACERS (39-36): Coach Frank Vogel expressed he planned to make some changes after the outing against Orlando disintegrated into the club's third 20-point home loss of the season. "We'll make some subtle changes, some bigger changes, the main thing is we have to remain together," Vogel told reporters after Friday's practice. "There's not a whole lot of wholesale changes you can make, but we'll make some subtle changes." George (27) and shooting guard Monta Ellis (13) were the only starters to score in double figures against the Magic.
ABOUT THE 76ERS (9-67): Philadelphia has dropped 24 of its last 25 games and struggling with its best two post players - center Jahlil Okafor and power forward Nerlens Noel - both sidelined with knee injuries. Friday's loss came in the second of a back-to-back against Charlotte in which the 76ers held the Hornets to 100 points in each contest but averaged just 88 offensively. "Defensively, I don't think we could have done much more," Philadelphia coach Brett Brown told reporters. "I think to hold that team to 100 points twice, defensively I don't have too many regrets. We needed to make more shots. It's almost that simple."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Pacers are 2-0 against the 76ers this season and have won eight of the past nine meetings.
2. Philadelphia G Isaiah Canaan is 9-of-39 shooting over the past four games.
3. George has scored 20 or more points in four straight games and is averaging 24.8 points during the stretch.