Game Preview: Heat v Pacers

The Indiana Pacers make the trip down south to take on the Miami Heat at
American Airlines Arena on Saturday night. The Pacers (30-28) stumbled through a
six-game losing streak heading into the All-Star break before posting a solid
102-92 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night. C.J. Miles was actually
the offensive linchpin posting 17 points, four rebounds, one assist, two steals
and two blocks. He drained five three-pointers for the majority of his scoring
haul. Monta Ellis followed with a bench-leading 16 points, which he complemented
with three assists and one rebound. Myles Turner totaled 12 points, six boards,
two assists, three steals and two blocks. Jeff Teague, Thaddeus Young and Lavoy
Allen contributed matching 10-point efforts. Teague added 10 assists and four
rebounds, Young provided five boards, one assist, one steal and one block, and
Allen hauled in 10 boards while adding a steal and a block as well. Paul George
notably underwhelmed, producing only nine points on 3-of-12 shooting, although
he did bring down nine rebounds, dish out four assists, and record a steal. The
one injury of note heading into Saturday for Indiana is Al Jefferson, who missed
Friday’s contest following a dental procedure. The Heat (26-32) had cooled off
just a tad before the All-Star break after rattling off 13 straight victories,
as they’d dropped a pair of contests to the Sixers and Magic, respectively.
However, they bounced back with a 117-109 triumph over the Houston Rockets in
their last game before the extended layoff, and then opened up the second half
of the season with a dominant 108-90 road win against the Hawks on Friday night.
Tyler Johnson led the way for the Heat with 23 points, five rebounds, five
assists and one steal in 26 minutes off the bench. Goran Dragic provided a first
unit-leading 17 points, which he supplemented with six rebounds, three assists
and two blocks. Dion Waiters turned in a 14-point, 10-assist double-double that
also included three rebounds, two blocks and one steal. Rodney McGruder tallied
13 points and three rebounds, while Luke Babbitt (12 points, six boards) and
Willie Reed (12 points, 10 rebounds) made important contributions as well.
Hassan Whiteside notably underperformed by shooting just 1-of-9 from the field
on his way to just two points, which he did manage to supplement with 10 boards,
two assists, two steals and one block. The Heat will check in to Saturday’s
contest at full health, not counting Justise Winslow, who is already ruled out
for the season with a shoulder injury. Saturday’s game will mark the second of
three meetings between the teams this season. Miami was victorious in the first
tilt on Dec. 14 by a 95-89 score, a contest in which Whiteside posted a mammoth
26-point, 22-rebound double-double.