This Sixers game had a much different level of excitement. Still, the end result was the same as ever.
The Sixers experienced some miscues down the stretch in a 101-94 loss to the Eastern Conference-leading Indiana Pacers at the Wells Fargo Center. The loss was the Sixers’ 19th straight overall and 15th in a row at home.
The Sixers’ record dropped to 15-50 for the season.
The Sixers were competitive throughout, closing the gap to just three points with 4:58 to play and again with 2:29 on the clock.
It was the first time in the last 11 games that the Sixers did not lose by double digits, mainly because they turned in their best defensive effort in recent memory.
Turning point
With the Sixers continuing to scrap and claw in the fourth quarter, George Hill drained a corner three-pointer in front of his own bench with 1:36 to play to give the Pacers an eight-point lead.
NBA
The Pacers were 9 for 21 from three-point range in the game.
Follow the leader
Paul George led the Pacers with 25 points. David West had 18 points and seven rebounds, while Lance Stephenson had a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
Thaddeus Young had a poor shooting night. He was 10 of 31 from the field for 25 points. Young also added 10 assists.
Michael Carter-Williams had 12 points, eight assists and nine rebounds.
Byron Mullens came off the bench to score 15 points and grab five rebounds for the Sixers.
Stat-egic
The Sixers committed back-to-back turnovers midway through the fourth quarter with a chance to make it a one-possession game.
The Sixers actually took excellent care of the basketball in the game, turning it over just 10 times.
The Sixers forced Indiana into 22 turnovers, one shy of the Pacers' season high.
Take a bow
Lavoy Allen made the most of his homecoming. The former Sixer came off the Pacers' bench to tie his season high in points with 13. Allen made all six of his field goal attempts and grabbed four rebounds in 17 minutes of action.
It was just the fourth game that Allen has appeared in since joining the Pacers. With Ian Mahinmi out with bruised ribs, Allen filled in nicely for Indiana.
What’s next?
No rest for the weary. The Sixers will try to avoid tying their longest losing streak in franchise history on Saturday night when they play the Memphis Grizzlies in a rare back-to-back set at home.
The Grizzlies took a four-game winning streak into Friday night before suffering a 99-86 loss to the Raptors.
Point guard Mike Conley and power forward Zach Randolph lead the Grizzlies in scoring with 17.2 and 17.1 points per game, respectively. Randolph also averages 10.3 rebounds a night.
Saturday will mark the first meeting of the season between the two teams.