Jan 29, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Rodney Stuckey (2) drives to the basket against New York Knicks guard Langston Galloway (2) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Indiana defeats New York 103-82. Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Pacers, who lost their three most recent home games, scored a combined 67 points during the second and third quarters Thursday night on their way to a 103-82 victory against the New York Knicks at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
The Pacers (17-31) made 14 of 23 field-goal tries in the second quarter and 15 of 23 in the third, including 5 of 7 from 3-point range, outscoring New York by 35 during that 24-minute window.
Guard Rodney Stuckey led Indiana with 22 points while center Roy Hibbert added 18 points and 10 rebounds. Forward Carmelo Anthony had 18 and forward Lou Amundson added 17 for the Knicks (9-38), who are an NBA-worst 3-21 on the road.
The Pacers blew this one wide open by sinking 10 of their first 11 third-quarter field goal attempts, including five field goals from Hibbert, extending a five-point halftime lead to 76-56 with 6:36 remaining in the period.
Consecutive 3-pointers from guard C.J. Watson and Stuckey and then another Stuckey field goal created the 20-point lead just 5:24 into the second half.
Indiana continued to dominate, getting a pair of 3-pointers from forward Solomon Hill on its way to an 84-59 advantage at the 3:50 mark. By quarter’s end, the Pacers enjoyed an 89-61 lead.
Indiana used a 32-point second quarter to seize a 54-49 halftime lead, charging back from a 29-22 deficit through the first 12 minutes when the Knicks made 10 of their first 13 field goal attempts.
The Pacers got a big boost from their non-starters, who outscored the New York bench 23-7 during the first two quarters, including eight points and five rebounds from forward/center Lavoy Allen on 4 of 5 shooting. However, Allen suffered a slight right knee injury late in first half action and did not return.
Stuckey’s 11 points paced Indiana during the opening half, while Anthony had 16 and Amundson scored 14 to lead the Knicks’ opening half scoring.
Each team shot well in the first two quarters. Indiana was 21 of 40 for 52.5 percent, and New York was 20 of 39 for 51.3 percent. The Pacers dominated the rebounding category during first half play, 25-17.
NOTES: The Knicks were without F/C Amare Stoudemire (sprained left ankle), F Travis Wear (strained left hip), C Cole Aldrich (confused left shin) and F/C Andrea Bargnani (strained right calf) on Thursday night. … The Pacers assigned 6-foot-11 rookie C Shayne Whittington to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA Development League. He has played in 13 games for the Pacers, averaging 2.0 points and 1.2 rebounds after signing in July as an undrafted free agent out of Western Michigan. … G George Hill was in the original starting lineup for the Pacers but was replaced by G Solomon Hill on the official NBA roster list.
