Indiana Pacers (8-17) at Los Angeles Clippers (17-7)

The last time around the Indiana Pacers decided a great strategy against the Los Angeles Clippers was to dig a giant hole for the reserves to try to get out of. Los Angeles blew a 15-point first-half lead and almost let the Pacers dig out of a 20-point hole in the second half. Needless to say, this is a terrible strategy when playing any team, much less the Clippers.

In the rematch the Pacers will have to slow down the starters of the Clippers and in general just not be terrible. In the game a week ago David West looked like he was old and busted, shooting 1 of 7, scoring only 2 points while dragging down 3 rebounds. Blake Griffin had 10 rebounds and DeAndre Jordan had 19 of them, both individually had more than the Pacers entire starting lineup’s total of 9. Indiana was a complete mess last time around and if it weren’t for the backups flipping the script, it would have been a blowout. It is great to see Luis Scola and LaVoy Allen score 12 and 14 points while grabbing 14 and 13 rebounds respectively, but the starters have to pick it up like they did against the Lakers. I want to see C.J. Miles go off for 30 points again, but I don’t want the starters to just be dead weight.

Who to watch on the Clippers: Jamal Crawford came off the bench and led the Clippers in scoring with 18 points. While the second unit of Indiana played well, they need to contain Crawford so maybe this go around they can do more than just make the game competitive.

Who to watch on the Pacers: David West’s last two games against the Clippers have been bad. There is no other way around it. He only scored 2 points a week ago, and the time before that he scored four points before being tossed. A full game and a strong performance by the veteran is needed if Indiana is going to expect a win.

The Big Question

Will Indiana’s starting unit be terrible again tonight? Last time they combined for 30 points and nine rebounds against the Clippers. That is a pretty horrific showing for that group and if they play like that again tonight, Indiana doesn’t have much of a chance at winning.

Betting Line

The Clippers are an 11-point favorite with an over under of 202. I expect the Pacers to cover the spread and I’d take the over. Pacers are probably gonna lose though.

One Random Thing

Welp.