San Antonio, TX - Paul George and the Indiana Pacers dropped their second straight game to the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night, falling to 16-11 on the year. George had the worst game of his season, shooting just 1-of-14 and scoring a season-low seven points while adding seven rebounds, six assists and six turnovers. His matchup, Kawhi Leonard, dominated the game with 24 points, six rebounds and five assists. The Spurs improved to 24-5 and have now won all 16 home games this season.

Both the Pacers and Spurs got out to slow, uneventful starts as both teams struggled to score the basketball. The Spurs dominated the inside while scoring 18 first quarter points in the paint. However, even with multiple turnovers and poor shooting, the Pacers kept it close and ended the first quarter on a Monta Ellis buzzer-beater to end the quarter down 23-21.

The Spurs second unit, namely Boris Diaw who finished with 14 points, provided a huge surge for the home team. They continued to pound the ball inside and force Lavoy Allen and C.J. Miles into early foul trouble. This was a key point in the game as Allen was playing particularly well for the Pacers both on the offensive and defensive end. Diaw and the rest of the second unit led the Spurs to a 10 point lead midway through the second quarter. It was then Rodney Stuckey who scored nine points in the second to claw the Pacers back. However, the Pacers continued to turn the ball over with nine total turnovers in the first half. And it was the Spurs who continued to dominate the inside while scoring all but 12 points in the paint. The Spurs led 50-48 at halftime.

The Pacers finally got the third quarter start they were looking for, as George Hill began the second half with a three pointer to take the lead, 51-50. But midway through the quarter, it was obvious that it was Kawhi Leonard’s night. Leonard made his seventh straight shot followed by an easy LaMarcus Aldridge layup to put the Spurs up 68-62 with 4:03 left in the quarter. The Spurs would finish the third leading, 79-70.

Just like the start of the third, Stuckey knocked down a three pointer to cut the Spurs lead down to six. From there, it was all Spurs as they went on a run to go up 88-76 with 8:56 left in the game. The Pacers struggled both defensively and offensively from that point and ended the game with their third string reserves on the floor.

Other than George Hill (15 points) and Ian Mahinmi (nine points, 11 rebounds), the starting unit for the Pacers struggled as they combined for just 46 points. It was the Pacers bench, led by Rodney Stuckey and Jordan Hill, who kept it close until the fourth quarter.

Key takeaways from the game were the Pacers inability to take care of the ball, poor defense, and Paul George’s off-night. The Pacers had 14 turnovers, six by George, which led to 18 fast break points for their opponent. According to Indy Star’s Scott Horner, PG13 now has 20 turnovers in his past three games. George must improve his decision making and ball handling in order to become an MVP caliber player and give his team the best chance to win the game.

Surprisingly, the Pacers outrebounded the bigger Spurs 48-45 and had 13 offensive boards. Ian Mahinmi (11), Jordan Hill (nine), and Lavoy Allen (eight) did a great job battling for rebounds to limit second chance points for the Spurs and create some of their own. Offensively, the Pacers were led by Rodney Stuckey with 16 points, Jordan Hill with 15, and George Hill with 15. Stuckey now has six straight games with double digit scoring.

This game was a great measuring stick for the Pacers and provided them with a few areas to improve. Going against the NBA’s best defense, the Pacers must take care of the basketball to allow for more offensive possessions and limit easy points for the opposing team. Head coach Frank Vogel must also focus on the team’s defense. On a night where the Spurs struggled with outside shots, they ended the game shooting 51.7 percent simply because of easy buckets around the rim. Hopefully with the return of Myles Turner, the Pacers inside presence can improve and force their opponent to settle for more outside jumpers.

The Pacers will return to Bankers Life Fieldhouse to play the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday (12/23) at 7:00 pm EST.