Pacers 112, 76ers 85
PHILADELPHIA -- Forward Paul George poured in 29 of his 34 points in a little over a quarter as the Indiana Pacers routed the winless Philadelphia 76ers 112-85 on Wednesday night.
Guard C.J. Miles added 20 points for the Pacers, who won for the seventh time in nine games.
Indiana was without point guard George Hill (upper respiratory infection) for the second straight game, but it hardly mattered against the 76ers. Philadelphia committed 31 turnovers, the most since Golden State had 31 against Sacramento on Nov. 8, 2000.
Rookie guard T.J. McConnell had a season-high 16 points to lead Philadelphia, the NBA's only winless team. The Sixers are five losses away from equaling their franchise-record 0-17 start of a year ago. They have also dropped 22 straight dating back to March 25, when they defeated Denver.
Philadelphia's 27 turnovers Monday against Dallas were the previous high in the league this season. Wednesday's total resulted in 37 Indiana points.
George, a two-time All-Star, broke his right leg while playing in a Team USA scrimmage on Aug. 1, 2014, and appeared in just six games last season.
This year he is averaging 26.1 points a game, and Wednesday marked the eighth straight game in which he has notched at least 26. He shot 13-for-24 from the floor, including 5-for-10 from 3-point range.
The Sixers committed 18 turnovers in the first two quarters, two shy of the franchise record for a half, but were down just 36-33 with 4:25 left in the second period. Indiana, however, closed the half on a 16-5 run to take a 52-38 lead.
George sank a free throw with 2:58 left in the half, after the Sixers were assessed a technical foul for having six players on the floor. He added seven more points before halftime, then generated 21 in the third quarter.
His three-point play with 3:16 left in the period gave Indiana a 77-47 lead. The Pacers led by as many as 33 in the fourth quarter.
NOTES: Sixers C Joel Embiid, who underwent a second surgery on his right foot in August and will miss his second consecutive season, consulted Wednesday with retired NBA C Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who missed an entire season (and the majority of two others) with foot problems. Ilgauskas played 10 productive seasons after recovering -- all but one with Cleveland -- and 11 in all. "They seem to be developing a pretty cool relationship," Philadelphia coach Brett Brown said. "His story is real, and it really resonates with Joel on the pitfalls of it all, the mental side of it all and the discipline to take care of your body, to get back on the court." Brown also said Embiid is doing "fantastic" in his recovery and that there has been "a real progression in his maturity." ... Indiana G Rodney Stuckey missed his fourth consecutive game with a sprained right ankle.