George, Turner power Pacers past Hornets
INDIANAPOLIS -- Paul George and Myles Turner each scored 22 points, and the Indiana Pacers made a season-best 17 shots from 3-point range to beat the Charlotte Hornets 110-94 on Monday night.
Jeff Teague added 16 points and 11 assists for Indiana (13-12), which outscored the Hornets 34-21 in the fourth quarter.
Marco Belinelli had 14 to lead Charlotte (14-11), which shot only 33 percent from the field. Nicolas Batum and Marvin Williams each scored 13 for the Hornets. Leading scorer Kemba Walker had 12 but made only 4 of 16 field goal attempts.
Rodney Stuckey scored 14 for Indiana before leaving in the fourth quarter with a left knee injury. C.J. Miles was the fifth Pacer in double figures with 11.
Indiana shot 48.9 percent from the field, including 17 of 36 from beyond the arc.
Consecutive field goals from George and Thaddeus Young gave the Pacers a 99-90 lead with 3:08 remaining, prompting a Charlotte timeout.
The Pacers opened the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run -- two field goals from Al Jefferson and one from Stuckey -- to open a 82-73 advantage with 10 minutes remaining.
C.J. Miles' 3-pointer in the closing seconds of the third quarter gave Indiana a 76-73 lead through 36 minutes. Charlotte led by as many as four in the third period but struggled with second-chance points.
The Pacers got 10 points each from George, Turner and Stuckey during a first half after which they led, 45-43. Indiana led by as many as 10 in the first half, shooting only 40.5 percent (17 of 42), taking advantage of eight Charlotte turnovers.
Williams and Walker each had eight for the Hornets, who shot only 31.1 percent (14 of 45), including only 4 of 13 from 3-point range. Charlotte stayed close by out rebounding Indiana, 30-21.
NOTES: Despite a left knee contusion, Charlotte leading scorer G Kemba Walker (23.3 points per game) was in the Hornets starting lineup. ... Indiana played without starting G Monta Ellis (9.7 points), who will miss four games with a sore groin suffered during the second quarter of Saturday night's victory against the Portland Trail Blazers. G/F Glenn Robinson III started in Ellis' place. ... The Hornets entered 6-4 on the road, and the Pacers came in 9-4 at home with three consecutive victories in Bankers Life Fieldhouse. ... Indiana F Paul George was coming off a season-high 37 points in Saturday's victory against the Portland Trail Blazers. ... Entering Monday's game, Charlotte beat Indiana four consecutive times with the Hornets sweeping last season's three-game series. ... Charlotte ranks second in the NBA in turnovers at only 11.8 per game. ... Indiana is second in turnovers forced per game at 16.3 per game.