Charlotte Hornets Take on the Indiana Pacers Looking to Avoid Third Straight Loss
By Russ Heltman
The Charlotte Hornets are hunting for the series tiebreaker in tonight’s final regular season matchup with Paul George and the Indiana Pacers.
The Charlotte Hornets (29-38) are looking to make one last attempt at a playoff push in tonight’s showdown with the Indiana Pacers (34-33). The Hornets currently hold the 11th seed in the Eastern Conference, 3.5 games back of the Milwaukee Bucks for the final playoff spot. A win tonight would mark Charlotte’s third victory over the Pacers this season, securing a tiebreaker over the 6th seeded team in the East.
The defense has been Charlotte’s biggest issue since the All-Star Break, ranking 17th in defensive rating since the break. Meanwhile, The Hornets are coming off of losses to the Pelicans and Bulls, allowing both to score over 110 points. The good news: Indiana ranks last in points per game since the All-Star Break at 98.1 PPG.
The Hornets have won five of their last six games against the Pacers but are only 2-8 in their last 10 trips to Indiana. Although, they have won two of their last three after sweeping the four-game season series last year.
More from Swarm and Sting
- Hornets: Where does Brandon Miller’s ceiling rank among other rookies?
- Charlotte Hornets grade out mostly average in position-by-position ranking
- Hornets News: P.J. Washington makes bold statement on Brandon Miller
- Grade the mock trade: Hornets snag Tyler Herro, flip Gordon Hayward
- Will the Charlotte Hornets be in the 2024 NBA Draft Lottery?
Charlotte Hornets vs Indiana Pacers
7:00 P.M. EST, Wednesday, March 15th, 2017
Bankers Life Fieldhouse
Broadcast on FOX Sports Southeast
Injury Report:
CHA:
Miles Plumlee: (Calf Strain) — OUT
Ramon Sessions: (Knee Surgery) — OUT
Nicolas Batum: (Migraines) — OUT
IND:
Lavoy Allen: (Knee) — OUT
Biggest Story:
Nicolas Batum’s Migraines
The Hornets highest-paid player will miss a consecutive game due to migraines and is receiving a CT scan while the team is on the road. the eighth-year veteran described the situation as “a scary period,” and noted that the pain is “excruciating.” Batum is Charlotte’s leader in assists per game and his playmaking was definitely missed over the last two contests.
Jeremy Lamb will start in place of Batum for the third straight game.
The UConn product put on a show against the Chicago Bulls a few nights ago, pouring in 26 points on 10-of-17 shooting. Lamb shot 53.3 percent from the field in his two previous games against Indiana this season.
Matchup to Watch
Paul George vs Michael Kidd-Gilchrist
Paul George torched Charlotte for 36 points in a 100-88 loss earlier this month.
George willed Indiana back into the game several times, mostly working against Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. MKG is coming off of an efficient 22-point showing against the Bulls, but his defense is what Charlotte will count on for this matchup.
Next: Steve Clifford Blame is Misdirected
The key for MKG is forcing mistakes, George’s performance earlier this month was voided by the six turnovers he committed. Having just committed another six giveaways against the Knicks, George’s handle is ripe for MKG’s picking.