Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Paul George scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead four Pacers in double figures and Indiana rallied from a seven-point halftime deficit for a 99-82 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday night.
Lance Stephenson scored 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting, Danny Granger came off the bench to score 13 and George Hill added 10 for Indiana.
Former Indiana University star Eric Gordon finished with 21 points for the Pelicans after scoring 17 in the first half.
Alexis Ajinca scored 17 points, reserve Tyreke Evans added 12 and Anthony Davis 10 for New Orleans.
New Orleans' shooting forward Ryan Anderson remained in a Boston hospital after sustaining a cervical stinger when he collided with the Celtics' Gerald Wallace and fell hard to the floor Friday night.
Five different Pacers scored as Indiana went on a 14-0 run over a 4:12 span of the third quarter. The Pelicans, meanwhile, missed seven straight field goals.
The frustrated Pelicans also drew three technical fouls during that stretch _ one each to Davis, Jrue Holiday and assistant coach Dave Hanners _ the last two after a foul was called on Holiday.
Ajinca converted both of his field goals in the third period, but the rest of the Pelicans missed 12 of 14 attempts.
Indiana made 11 of 16 field goals (68.8 percent) in the decisive quarter.
The Pelicans put together a 12-0 run over a 3:08 span in the first quarter to push a two-point lead to a 27-13 advantage 2:30 before the break. Davis hit a jumper and drove the baseline to pace the surge.
Watson hit a 15-foot jumper, Luis Scola sank a jumper from the right side and Watson made a 19-footer as Indiana responded with a 6-0 burst in under a minute early in the second period to close to within eight points.
Gordon scored his 17 first-half points on 7-of-11 shooting, including 3 of 4 from beyond the arc, to help the Pelicans lead 49-44 at the half.
New Orleans shot 52.5 percent (21 of 40) in the first half; Indiana was 18 of 43 for 41.9 percent. The Pacers missed eight of 11 3-point attempts in the half.
The Eastern Conference-leading Pacers won for the sixth time in their last seven games.
NOTES: Earlier Saturday, the Pacers recalled rookie forward Solomon Hill from the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA D-League. He averaged 19 points and 3.5 rebounds in two games there. . The Pacers' comeback went against the Pelicans' grain. Going into Saturday's game, New Orleans had been 9-1 when holding its opponent to fewer than 100 points and 11-5 when it had the halftime lead. . George has scored more than 20 points in 24 of the Pacers' 32 games.
(Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
