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Pacers sharp from long distance to down Hornets

Nov 22, 2007 - 5:59 AM By Ed Cassiere PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

NEW ORLEANS (Ticker) -- Troy Murphy and some well-timed 3-pointers gave the Indiana Pacers a much-needed victory.

Murphy scored 18 of his 23 points in the first half, and the Pacers hit five 3-pointers during a six-minute stretch in the middle of the game that carried them to a 105-93 victory Wednesday over the New Orleans Hornets.

The victory was the second in nine games for the Pacers and came one day after a lopsided, 134-114, home loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in which Indiana allowed its most points since 2002.

Murphy made three of Indiana's five 3-pointers, which turned a 45-44 first-half deficit in the final three minutes of the first half into a 67-57 lead at 8:31 of the third quarter. Indiana kept the double-digit advantage for most of the remainder of the game.

"I was trying to be aggressive," Murphy said. "I struggled with my shooting the last couple of games. We had good energy out there, and we showed some consistency."

Jamaal Tinsley had 18 points and 11 assists for the Pacers, who earned their first road victory since November 3. It was the second consecutive double-double for Tinsley and his third straight game with 10 or more assists.

"Jamaal was attacking (the lane) and finding people," Indiana coach Jim O'Brien said. "He did a wonderful job quarterbacking the team."

Danny Granger, who grew up in the New Orleans area, added 17 points, and Mike Dunleavy scored 16.

David West scored 23 points, Peja Stojakovic added 15 and Melvin Ely netted 11 for New Orleans, which was trying to become the second team this season to reach 10 victories. The Hornets lost at home for the second time in three days.

Indiana, which allowed the Lakers to shoot 58 percent (42-for-72) from the floor, became the second team this season to hold New Orleans to less than 40 percent shooting. The Hornets shot 39 percent (34-for-87), and the Pacers made 46 percent (41-for-89).

"We were really strong defensively," O'Brien said. "We kept the tempo where we needed it. We had 25 assists and seven turnovers. That's a great job. We took care of the rock and did everything we needed to get win on the road against a great team."

New Orleans played without starting center Tyson Chandler, who hyperextended his knee on Monday in the loss to Orlando.

"The Hornets are a really good rebounding team," Murphy said. "Without Chandler, we knew we could bang the boards with them."

Hornets coach Byron Scott said his team lost because of a lack of effort.

"It's mind-boggling," Scott said. "I have no idea (why). All the things that we talked about this morning, we just didn't do them. We allowed (the Pacers) to do whatever they wanted to do. We just didn't play very smart either."

Hornets guard Chris Paul, who scored a season-low eight points, disagreed with Scott on effort but agreed that his team was deficient.

"One thing we're going to do every game is put out the effort," Paul said. "It wasn't a lack of effort. Indiana's size gave us problems. We didn't make shots. We're supposed to be a running team, and we needed to get out in transition more."

Indiana enjoyed a 20-3 advantage in fast-break points, including 8-0 in the second half.