Nate Taylor

IndyStar

OKLAHOMA CITY — The noise was loud, the national television cameras were rolling and the Pacers started the stretch run of their season with one of the most difficult road assignments in the NBA: beating the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook can make accomplishing that feat difficult for any team. The Pacers, a team solidifying themselves in a traditional style with a still-fresh starting lineup, provided little resistance to Durant and Westbrook.

Yet, with an impressive rally in the second half, the Pacers captured their most significant win of the season: a 101-98 victory Friday night inside Chesapeake Energy Arena.

BOX SCORE: Pacers 101, Thunder 98

A collected effort generated the Pacers’ 29th win.

Nineteen-year-old rookie Myles Turner made the first 3-pointer of his career in the final minute to tie the game. Paul George guarded Durant closely enough on the following possession to force an off-balanced 3-pointer, which bounced off the rim. Once Turner collected the rebound, Monta Ellis made the shot of the game, a fadeaway 3-pointer with 19 seconds left that swished through the net, sending the Pacers’ bench into celebration.

When George needed to make free throws among a rabid, vociferous crowd, he hit 3-of-4, which was enough for the Pacers to start the second half as winners.

“Hopefully, this is a springboard victory,” coach Frank Vogel said. “This is what we talked about before the game, an opportunity to get the best win of the year and to have a momentum-building victory to start the final 29 games.”

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Beyond the matchup of George and Ellis verses Durant and Westbrook, the Pacers showed signs, in rather dramatic fashion late, of how they might be ready to compete against the league’s elite teams. That was demonstrated with execution in the final minutes that was rarely seen before Friday’s game.

The Pacers ended the game on a 17-7 run. They also made all five of their 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.

Several players in the locker room after the game praised Ellis for his determination, decision-making and leadership. Before the third quarter began, Ellis gathered the rest of the starters on the court, encouraged them and told them to play harder on defense.

Ellis then led the Pacers by scoring 20 of his team-high 27 points after halftime.

“His leadership and his aggressiveness is everything that we need,” Ian Mahinmi said of Ellis, who was not in the locker room after game and did not talk to reporters. “At the end of the third quarter and early fourth, when we needed a push, he provided that for us. It’s super important to have a player like that, that can take over a game at crucial moments like that.”

The Pacers (29-25) slowly began cutting into the Thunder’s nine-point lead in the fourth quarter by having Ellis score in transition. They also showed their ability to defend the paint with a combine eight blocks from Mahinmi and Turner.

In the final minutes two minutes, Mahinmi and Turner forced the Thunder (40-15) take several of their shots from outside the paint. Even when Westbrook drove into the lane with 13 seconds left, he missed his layup.

“That’s everything that we envisioned,” said Mahinmi, who contributed with a season-high 19 points, of protecting the rim alongside Turner. “I think there’s still room for improvement. For us, I think that we’re playing pretty well and we cover for each other pretty well.”

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The Thunder, led by their vigorous duo, scored plenty of their points from strong drives into the paint that led to baskets once a crisp pass was made. The passes usually came from Westbrook, who finished with 23 points and 18 assists, a career high.



“He’s a nightmare to try to prepare for,” Vogel said of Westbrook after the team’s shootaround. “The motor that he comes at you with and his ability to shoot on the perimeter and get to the basket at will. My message to these guys is it really has to be a team effort to guard him. It’s not just about his scoring, he's second in the league in assists. He’s a willing passer and he’s a great reader of help defense.”

George, who finished with 22 points, said he looked forward to facing Durant and Westbrook after playing against them in the All-Star Game in Toronto five days earlier. George on Wednesday joked that he would be extra ready for the game after Durant and Westbrook doubled him late in Sunday’s game to prevent him for scoring the most points in an All-Star game.

But on Friday, George found it much harder to free himself for jump shots. Not only did George find little space to shoot the ball — he was 6-of-14 — but he expended a lot of energy trying to guard Durant, who scored a game-high 31 points.

What made George smile the most was not him successful defending Durant late, but watching Turner make his 3-pointer in front on the Pacers’ bench. Although Turner had attempted just two shots behind the arc this season, he swished his third attempt Friday and raised his right hand high to show three fingers as if he had done it several times this season.

“I’m very confident in my shot and my shooting abilities,” Turner said. “I always have been. My shot really wasn’t falling that game, but as a shooter, you know, everybody says next shot, next shot. I just felt confident, wound it up and let it fly.”

So did Ellis on the next offensive possession. And for the first time since 2009, the Pacers exited Chesapeake Energy Arena with a victory – and it was their biggest of the season.

“Early on, we would have lost a game like this, just not finding ways to make enough plays down the stretch,” George said. “I thought we did that on both ends. We made some key stops defensively. We have a good group. This is how we’ve got to close out games now.”

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Donovan praises Williams for his strength

Before the game, Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan shared his thoughts on the eulogy that his assistant coach Monty Williams gave at the memorial service of his wife, Ingrid Williams. In his speech, which quickly gained notoriety Thursday night, he shared his Christian faith and asked for people to pray for his family and the family of the driver who lost control of a vehicle that resulted in the car accident Feb. 10 and his wife's death.

Donovan, along with several players and members of the Thunder organization, attended the memorial service. Donovan said Williams’ words will help others who are dealing with the death of a loved one or are struggling through a difficult circumstance.

“I respect and admire Monty and his family’s faith. That’s very important to me as well,” Donovan said.

He added: “I think when you see someone in the face of a very, very tragic and very difficult situation, his true colors come out of who he is as a man and who his family is, I think, very, very inspiring. It’s very, very uplifting. I think it gives people a lot of hope. I think to what he said in his eulogy is that something good is going to come out of this and I think it started yesterday.”

Call IndyStar reporter Nate Taylor at (317) 444-6484. Follow him on Twitter: @ByNateTaylor.

Pacers at Magic, 6 p.m. Sunday, Fox Sports Midwest

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