Paul George led the way with a triple-double, all of Indiana's starters scored in double-figures and the Atlanta Hawks got bludgeoned by Frank Vogel's attacking offense during a 107-90 Pacers win Sunday.
NBA Playoffs 2013, Hawks vs. Pacers Game 1: Paul George records triple-double in 107-90 Indiana win
The Indiana Pacers were the more aggressive team in a Game 1 win against the Atlanta Hawks.
Opening the series on the road, the Hawks banked their success in Game 1 on a small-ball lineup ready to push the tempo against the slow-paced, defensive-minded Indiana Pacers.
It backfired.
Indiana looked comfortable on the break and overall dominated the Hawks with an aggressive, attacking offense. It wasn’t always pretty with the Pacers shooting 45 percent from the field, but a 34-14 advantage on free throw attempts powered Indiana’s offense.
George scored 23 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and recorded 12 assists on the day. Though he struggled from the field, hitting just 3-of-13 shots, he led the charge in Indiana’s frequent trips to the foul line by hitting 17-of-18 at the charity stripe, tying Reggie Miller’s franchise mark for made free throws.
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George Hill helped the Pacers open the game with a sense of urgency. He hit all five of his first quarter shot attempts for 13 points as Indiana shot 63 percent overall to take a 34-26 lead into the second quarter. The two squads played it even over the next dozen minutes, with the Pacers taking a 58-50 lead into halftime.
The third quarter was the back-breaker of sorts for Indiana, which outscored the Hawks, 26-19, despite shooting 38 percent from the floor.
The difference, as it was all night, was at the foul stripe. The Pacers went 9-for-10 in the third, but Atlanta didn’t get to the free throw line once in the period. Meanwhile, Josh Smith (15 points, eight rebounds) looked sluggish after his leg buckled on a play during the second half, and Al Horford (14 points) was effective but only got 12 shot attempts.
The Hawks trailed by as many as 17 in the second half, though they cut the deficit by eight points midway through the fourth quarter. However, Tyler Hansbrough came through with a game-defining play when he grabbed two of the possession's three offensive boards and hit a free throw as the Pacers finally finished off a four-point trip with a Hill three-pointer.
Atlanta, led by Jeff Teague’s 21 points and seven assists, shot a sound 50 percent for the game, but ultimately the free throw disadvantage was too much to overcome.
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