The Indiana Pacers surprisingly beat the Miami Heat on the road 81-75. Roy Hibbert played really well as he had 16 points on 7-of-14 from the field to go along with 15 rebounds and three blocks. Chris Copeland led the Pacers with 17 points to go along with five rebounds. Donald Sloan had a terrific game as well with 15 points, six rebounds, and three assists. Sloan has had a few good games as he is replacing the injured George Hill in the starting lineup. The Pacers only shot 37.5 percent from the field but played excellent defense, only allowing 75 points this game.
"Our guys were just competing their tails off," said Frank Vogel after the game. The Pacers got a seven-point lead in the fourth quarter, which was their biggest lead of the night, but then Miami scored seven straight points to tie it before Indiana closed on a 6-0 run.
Dwyane Wade led the way for Miami with 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the field, and Shawne Williams chipped in with 15 points on 5-of-6 from the field, including 4 three pointers. Those were the only two Heat players that scored double figures tonight. Costless throw shooting hurt the Heat this game as they shot 8-of-18, just 44 percent. The Heat also got killed on the boards and got out-rebounded 53-to-28, and that's what also kept the Pacers in this game. The Pacers did take 12 more shots than the Heat tonight. Chris Bosh had a real off night with nine points on 3-of-13 from the field and just two rebounds. Bosh has played great so far this year, but it just wasn't his night.
"You have to figure out a way to pull off a few games throughout the year. We didn't do that tonight, but hopefully next time we're in this situation we learn from tonight, and we figure out a way," Wade stated after the contest.
The Indiana Pacers have a lot of injuries as they had David West, George Hill, C.J. Miles, Rodney Stuckey, Paul George, and C.J. Watson all out tonight. Despite all the missing pieces, the Pacers are still great defensively, but they really struggle offensively. In fact, they were one of the worst offensive teams last year, even with George and Lance Stephenson in the lineup. If they get healthy soon, they may have a chance to make it to the playoffs, but it will be tough for them with Paul George out the entire season and the loss of Lance Stephenson.
The Miami Heat were off to a good start but surprisingly lost tonight at home against the Pacers, who were 2-6 going into this game and had a lot of players out. The Heat now fall to 5-3. They will be a good team and possibly top three in the East, if Bosh plays at a really high level like he has this season, and Wade stays healthy. When Bosh is really on top of his game, they are a tough team to beat.