INDIANA PACERS (7-6) 100, CAVS (5-8) 89
at Conseco Fieldhouse
RADIO/TV: WTAM/Fox Sports Ohio


WHAT HAPPENED: The Pacers are playing inspired basketball. Some thought they might experience heavy legs for the Cavs game, but that was anything but the case.

The Pacers dusted the Miami Heat on Monday, 93-77, in South Florida. They blew home and arrived in Indiana about 2:30 a.m. One would think the fact that Tuesday's game was the tail end of a back-to-back set would be a factor.

But so was the Pacers' ability to score. They hung 62 points on the Cavs in the first half on Tuesday and never looked back.

The Cavs outscored the Pacers in the fourth quarter, 33-17, to make the score look respectable. It wasn't.

The Pacers exploit the Cavs' perimeter defense with their shooting. They outscored the Cavs from behind the arc, 36-9. In the two games, they have outscored the Cavs from long distance, 66-15.

Forward Danny Granger, playing like he wants to be in the All-Star Game, has had 34 and 24 points in the two games against the Cavs. He's also been 10 of 17 from behind the arc.

Cavs coach Byron Scott harped on his team's defense in practice on Monday. It made little impact with the players, who are still playing soft on the defensive end.

The Cavs host the Bucks on Wednesday. It could be more of the same problems for the Cavs.

STARTERS
SF Joey Graham (6-7, 230) vs. Danny Granger (6-8, 228)
PF J.J. Hickson (6-9, 242) vs. Josh McRoberts (6-10, 240)
C Anderson Varejao (6-11, 260) vs. Roy Hibbert (7-2, 278)
SG Anthony Parker (6-6, 210) vs. Mike Dunleavy (6-9, 230)
PG Mo Williams (6-1, 195) vs. Darren Collison (6-9, 160)
INACTIVE LIST
Cavs - F/C Samardo Samuels, G Christian Eyenga, G Manny Harris.
Pacers - F/C Jeff Foster, G A.J. Price, G Lance Stephenson.
OFFICIALS
Steve Javie, Eli Roe, Zach Zarba.