NEW YORK — Once the Indiana Pacers starting pushing the tempo in the second quarter, the Brooklyn Nets ended up in a hole that was just too deep.
C.J. Miles had 27 points, Paul George scored 17, and the Indiana Pacers sent the Nets to their fifth straight loss, 114-100 on Wednesday night.
"I got some open 3s, I got to the basket," Miles said. "I was able to play off of what the defence was giving me. I felt like I just had a good rhythm tonight."
George Hill added 13 for the Pacers. Brook Lopez had 21 points and Joe Johnson had 20 points and nine assists for the Nets.
Indiana opened the game on a 17-9 run. Brooklyn then missed its first eight shots to start second quarter. Indiana outscored the Nets 36-20 in the second and went up 62-43 at the half.
In the third quarter, Joe Johnson and Thaddeus Young combined for 21 points to help Brooklyn trim the deficit to 87-77 at the end of the third.
Indiana’s bench outscored Brooklyn’s by 42 points in the victory.
"They brought great energy," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. "Solomon Hill with his energy, C.J. with his scoring, Joe Young made some big buckets, Lavoy Allen had a strong performance. They were a big part of the victory."
With Rodney Stuckey and Ian Mahinmi due back from injury, George believes Indiana should be considered a contender in the East.
"If C.J. gets hot like he was in November, I get hot like I was in November, Monta (Ellis) continues to play well, Myles (Turner) steps up and continues to play at a high level like he’s doing, we get Ian back from injury, we get Stuckey back from injury, this team can be pretty scary," George said.
Pacers: Coach Frank Vogel praised the play of rookie Myles Turner who is averaging 17.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game over his past eight games. "I don’t know if I’d call it a big surprise," Vogel said. "We have great belief in this young man. If there’s a surprise, it’s how quickly it’s coming to him, maybe. When we selected him in the draft this year, we had very high hopes." … Vogel also praised the return of Paul George after missing most of last season with a broken leg. "It’s a miracle he’s on a basketball court." … Rodney Stuckey (ankle) did not dress.
Nets: Thaddeus Young posted his 22nd double-double, which is a new single-season career-high for him. … Coach Tony Brown said a return for Chris McCullough could happen in the near future. "Chris will definitely be available after the All-Star break," Brown said. "There’s a possibility he could get maybe get some minutes before the break. But again, I don’t want this whole Chris McCullough thing to get so big that everybody wants to see him play. I’m not going to play him until I feel comfortable with him on the floor and I don’t want to embarrass him." … McCullough (knee), Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (ankle) and Jarrett Jack (knee surgery) did not dress.
IN ATTENDANCE
Rapper Ja Rule, former Mets pitcher John Franco and former Yankees pitcher David Cone were courtside at Barclays Center.
UP NEXT
Pacers: Visit Atlanta on Friday.
Nets: Visit Sacramento on Friday.
