George Hill: 'I feel like we're giving the season away, one game at a time'

NEW YORK – It wasn't the start that the Pacers needed to a crucial week.

In the first of four games against teams in the tight Eastern Conference playoff picture, Indiana was hoping to move into a tie for eighth place Tuesday night, but failed to do so, falling to Brooklyn 111-106 at Barclays Center.

With just eight games remaining, Tuesday's loss could be devastating for the Pacers' playoff hopes, as Brooklyn moved into sole possession of eighth place in the East and sits 1.5 games ahead of Indiana, as well as owning the tiebreaker over the Pacers.

"I feel like we're giving the season away, one game at a time," George Hill, who led Indiana with 28 points, said. "We've got to forget about it now, focus on tomorrow, bring it tomorrow and try to get a win tomorrow. You've just got to bring it more, and take away the loss and how bad it feels."

The Pacers, who now sit in 10th place, can make up some ground Wednesday when they head to Boston, which sits in ninth.

After splitting their first two meetings this season, the Pacers jumped out to a 7-0 lead over the Nets on Tuesday. But Brooklyn responded with an 8-0 to take the lead, and then dominated the rest of the first quarter to take a 33-15 lead, as Brooklyn's Brook Lopez, the reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week, nearly outscored the Pacers himself, getting 14. Lopez finished with a team-high 24 points for Brooklyn.

Indiana fell behind by 19 early in the second quarter, but scored 39 points in the quarter while cutting into the deficit. The Pacers claimed a 52-50 lead when Solomon Hill hit a 3-pointer with 2 minutes left in the half. But the Nets took a 57-54 lead into halftime after Lopez hit a short jumper at the buzzer.

After the game, Indiana coach Frank Vogel was disappointed, saying the Pacers have no choice but to move on. It didn't take away from his feelings, but the one bright spot for him was how the Pacers fought back after trailing by such a wide margin.

"A lot of guts, a lot of heart," Vogel said. "I just saw a lot of guys step up and do the best they can.

"Game's over. There's plenty of basketball still to be played. We've got to move on right away."

The third quarter opened with the Pacers going on another 7-0 run to take a 61-57 lead. But Brooklyn was able to take an 84-79 lead by the end of the quarter.

After trailing for the entire fourth quarter, Indiana cut Brooklyn's lead to 103-100 with 2 minutes, but the Nets responded with a jumper and a 3-pointer. After George Hill hit a 3-pointer with 15 seconds left, the Nets knocked down two free throws to hand Indiana its eighth loss in 10 games.

Hill led the Pacers with 28 points, while David West scored 14. C.J. Watson added 13.

After Wednesday's game at Boston, the Pacers return home for two more crucial games against Charlotte on Friday and Miami on Sunday.

"We're definitely being counted out right now, but we just have to do a collective as a team," Solomon Hill said. "We're not here to ask anybody's forgiveness or ask for anybody's help, it's the guys in this locker room that will make the difference."

INDIANA at BOSTON

Tipoff: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday

TV: Fox Sports Indiana.

Radio: WFNI-FM (107.5), WFNI-AM (1070).

PACERS (32-42)

Pos. Player PPG Key stat PG George Hill 15.9 4.7 apg SG C.J. Miles 12.6 2.9 rpg SF Solomon Hill 9.2 4.0 rpg PF David West 11.9 7.0 rpg C Roy Hibbert 10.8 1.7 bpg 6th Rodney Stuckey 12.9 38.3 3FG%

*-statistics through Monday.

CELTICS (33-41)

Pos. Player PPG Key stat PG Marcus Smart 7.7 3.2 apg SG Avery Bradley 14.1 3.1 rpg SF Evan Turner 9.4 5.2 apg PF Brandon Bass 10.6 4.9 rpg C Tyler Zeller 10.0 5.6 rpg 6th Isaiah Thomas 18.9 5.3 apg

STORYLINES:

Playoff seeding: The Pacers played a key game in the playoff race Tuesday night in Brooklyn. Entering that game, Boston held the eighth seed by a half-game over Indiana, a game over Brooklyn and 1.5 over Charlotte.

Back-to-back blues? The Pacers are 5-11 in back-to-back games — they play in Brooklyn on Tuesday — but 4-5 when playing a team that didn't play the night before, as they will be Wednesday against Boston.

Prediction: After a five-game winning streak, including a victory in Indianapolis, the Brad Stevens-led Celtics are 3-5. But that came against a difficult schedule. The Pacers come up short in a vital game in the playoff race: Boston 114, Indiana 109.

— Nat Newell