Warriors 78 - 102 Pacers
Final
  for this game

Pacers square off with Warriors

Feb 28, 2012 - 3:54 PM (Sports Network) - The Indiana Pacers try to follow up a sensational first half of the season this evening when they start their post All-Star break schedule against the Golden State Warriors at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

Indiana went into the break with four straight wins, including a 102-88 win over the hapless Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday. Tyler Hansbrough scored 22 points and pulled down nine rebounds off the bench to lead the way in that one, while Six Pacers scored in double figures, including 12 from Danny Granger, and 10 points apiece from Darren Collison, Paul George and Dahntay Jones.

"Our depth is big for us," Hansbrough said. "It's good to know you have some guys that can come off the bench that can do some work. I feel like our second unit, when we get in there, we're not taking anything away. We're just trying to build the lead."

The Pacers needed a huge second half to get the Eastern Conference's eighth seed last season, but this year only the Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls are ahead of them in the conference.

"Our team has no ceiling," head coach Frank Vogel said. "I've said that from Day 1. I know we can play with the best in the league.

"We've just got to do it on a consistent enough basis to earn one of the league?s best records. We are near the top. We want to be at the top. We've got great talent at every position. We're not a mega-star team but we've got stars on our team."

Another win tonight would give the Pacers their first five-game winning streak since March 19-26, 2010.

Golden State, meanwhile, won its final two games before the break, but still sits in fourth place in the Pacific Division at 13-17, three games out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

"We fully understand what we have to do to be successful," head coach Marc Jackson said. "Now is an opportunity for us to take what we've learned in the first half and to build on it."

Tonight, the Warriors could be without guard Stephen Curry, who sprained a ligament in his team's 106-104 win over Phoenix on Wednesday. Curry is averaging 16.5 points this season.

Of their NBA-high 36 games remaining, the Warriors will play 21 of those contests on the road, where Golden State was just 4-8 in the first half.

Indiana beat the Warriors back on January 20 and has won five of the last eight overall meetings. Golden State has also dropped four in a row and nine of its last 10 in Indiana.






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