Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
On the 15 year anniversary of Malice at the Palace, former Pacer Al Harrington reflects on the violent event.
On the 15 year anniversary of Malice at the Palace, former Pacer Al Harrington reflects on the violent event.
It’s the 15th anniversary of the Pacers and Pistons fight at the Palace of Auburn Hills.
On November 19th, 2004, a fight erupted in the final minute of a lopsided Pacers-Pistons game, and escalated into one of the ugliest scenes in modern NBA history.
Ben Wallace took issue with a foul from Ron Artest, now Metta World Peace, and responded with a hard shove to Artest’s chest. Moments later, just as the teams seemed to be separating, a fan launched a cup of beer toward the group of players, which hit Artest in the chest. Artest then jumped into the stands and attacked a fan, and other Pacers jumped over seats to back him up. In all, the resulting suspensions cost the involved players a total of 146 games, led by Artest, who was suspended for the remainder of the season.
15 years later, Reggie Miller – who did not play for the Pacers that night but earned a 1-game suspension for entering the stands – recapped the chaos during an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show. Miller said that the Pacers weren’t concerned for their safety leaving the arena that night, but there was talk of “assassins” when Indiana returned later in the season. That game was delayed after multiple bomb threats were called into the Palace.
“When we played them again and had to come to the Palace, that’s when the issues of safety [arose], because people were calling in bomb threats. There were supposed to be hitmen and assassins, it was, like, crazy. We had to stay on the bus – I’m not kidding you – two hours, we couldn’t even go into the Palace the next time we came to play the Pistons because there were so many bomb scares. The police presence was unbelievable.”
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Once again, the Brooklyn Nets underperformed. This time, it cost them a loss at the hands of the Indiana Pacers on Monday.
The Nets had an opportunity to win back-to-back games in which Kyrie Irving was sidelined due to a right shoulder impingement, but they were done in by a rough second quarter where the Indiana Pacers outscored Brooklyn 41-17 on Monday
All-around, the Nets had a rough shooting night, which made it even tougher to make up for the wide gap created before halftime.
Although he felt shooting was an issue for Brooklyn, Kenny Atkinson saw a lot else wrong with the way his team performed in against the Pacers, as he expressed to reporters following the 115-86 loss:
We totally weren’t there tonight, for whatever reason. Defensively, offensively, rebound, physicality. I just think it was total domination by Indiana. In a game like this in the NBA, you gotta give them a lot of credit. ‘Cause, they had a lot of guys out too, right? … Fantastic job by Indiana. A lotta credit. Nets, we weren’t very good tonight.
Given the way the Nets have played throughout the first 13 games of the season, a performance like Monday’s isn’t overly surprising for Atkinson:
Below-average teams are inconsistent, and that’s what we are right now. … Until we get the group together and find some more consistency — what’s disappointing [is] I thought we had two good efforts, Denver [and] Utah, and then an excellent road win. Then to come here, in front of our fans, it just doesn’t feel good at all.
A big second quarter for the Indiana Pacers was too much for the Brooklyn Nets to come back from on Monday.
With Caris LeVert (thumb) out for an extended period of time and Kyrie Irving (right shoulder impingement) sidelined, the Brooklyn Nets were short-handed again on Monday. Though, their opponents, the Indiana Pacers, were, as well.
At first, the Nets exposed the Pacers’ lack of offense, holding them to 18 points in the first quarter. But, Brooklyn couldn’t take full advantage, only matching Indiana’s output in the opening quarter.
The issue came in the second, when Indiana went off for 41 points, while Brooklyn’s offense sputtered, only scoring 17. In the end, the major gap created too much of a problem for the Nets, as they dropped Monday’s contest 115-86.
Spencer Dinwiddie led Brooklyn in scoring, again. He had 28 points on 9-for-21 shooting (4-for-8 from three). He also had eight assists.
That move just ain't fair!
Stream #NETSonYES LIVE: https://t.co/1aKVxTNRwG pic.twitter.com/Skq0QrzoqC
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) November 19, 2019
Garrett Temple and Jarrett Allen scored 10 points apiece. They were the only other Nets to finish in double figures.
Allen also grabbed 12 rebounds to earn his team-leading fourth double-double of the season.
Flyin' Fro pic.twitter.com/ScUpdGqcjL
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) November 19, 2019
Taurean Prince went 3-for-11 from the floor, scoring seven points. Joe Harris only scored seven points, as well. He made 1 of his 5 3-point attempts (3-for-8 from the field).
𝐩𝐢𝐯𝐨𝐭
𝑝𝑖𝑣𝑜𝑡
𝙥𝙞𝙫𝙤𝙩@taureanprince | #WeGoHard pic.twitter.com/JJOuS5DMc0— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) November 19, 2019
Spencer Dinwiddie will have to fill in for Kyrie Irving again. Brooklyn’s point guard is still dealing with a right shoulder impingement.
Kyrie Irving will be sidelined again for the Brooklyn Nets on Monday. He is still dealing with a right shoulder impingement.
The issue first arose before Brooklyn faced the Denver Nuggets on Friday and kept Irving out of Saturday’s win over the Chicago Bulls — in which Spencer Dinwiddie started at point guard.
While Irving was out, Dinwiddie led the Nets with 24 points in the 117-111 finish, closing out the five-game road trip with a win. Joe Harris also had his highest-scoring game of the season, finishing with 22 points against the Bulls.
The Indiana Pacers will also be without their top-two players on Monday. Malcolm Brogdon is out with a sore back and Victor Oladipo is still rehabbing from his knee surgery.
Additionally, the Pacers will be without Jeremy Lamb due to an ankle sprain and T.J. McConnell is sidelined, as well, due to a sore groin.
Injury update: Lamb and McConnell are both OUT for tonight's game. https://t.co/eKiEB7jp5R
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) November 18, 2019
RELATED: Kenny Atkinson likens Spencer Dinwiddie to a tailback
Previewing Monday’s Indiana Pacers at Brooklyn Nets sports betting odds and lines, with NBA matchup analysis, picks and tips.
The Indiana Pacers (7-6) face the Brooklyn Nets (5-7) Monday night just after 7:30 pm ET at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. We analyze the Pacers-Nets odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.
Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.
Pacers:
Nets:
NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 10:45 a.m. ET.
Nets 121, Pacers 110
The NETS (-167) are 3-2 on the moneyline at home and 5-7 overall. On the other hand, Indiana is 2-4 away from home but one of those wins came last month in Brooklyn by a 118-108 score. Brooklyn wants revenge for that clunker and so does Irving, who had one of his worst performances of the season.
New to sports betting? A $10 wager on Brooklyn returns a profit of $5.99.
After a weird 0-4 start against the spread which included an 0-2 mark at home, Brooklyn has covered two of its last three contests at Barclays Center. Indiana is 2-4 against the spread on the road but comes close to the cover line. The same goes for Brooklyn of late.
BROOKLYN (-3.5, -115) will cover against the Pacers. The Nets can put up 120-plus points per game and the Pacers may not be able to keep up in the fourth quarter.
A $10 wager here results in a profit for $8.70 if Brooklyn covers.
The projected total is set at 218.5. It seems like a rather low number and these two teams could exceed it easily if they play to their pace. Brooklyn must crank up the shot volume like Indiana did to them last month. Side with the OVER at -115.
Want some action on this game? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips and advice, visit SportsbookWire.com.
Follow @ChrisWasselDFS and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.
Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.
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The Brooklyn Nets could be without Kyrie Irving for back-to-back games.
Kyrie Irving’s right shoulder continues to be a problem for the point guard. He has been ruled questionable ahead of Monday’s game at Barclays Center against the Indiana Pacers.
Since Wednesday, Irving has been dealing with a right shoulder impingement. He was ruled questionable before the games in Denver and Chicago, as well. He played in the Nets loss to the Nuggets, but sat out in the win over the Bulls.
Spencer Dinwiddie started at point guard for the Nets on Saturday in Irving’s place. Now in his fourth year with the Nets, Dinwiddie had a big performance against the Bulls. He scored 24 points in Brooklyn’s win. Twenty of those points came in the fourth quarter, as Dindiddie set a new personal record for most points in a quarter in his NBA career.
RELATED: Kenny Atkinson likens Spencer Dinwiddie to a tailback
RELATED: Spencer Dinwiddie leads Nets past Bulls in final game of road trip
Against the 76ers, Terrance Ferguson scored a season-high 19, the Thunder struggled in the third quarter and OKC hit their free throws.
Oklahoma City beat the 76ers 127-119 in overtime Friday night. It was the Thunder’s first overtime game of the season and a solid win before heading out to the West Coast for a two-game set in Los Angeles against the Clippers and the Lakers.
Here are three takeaways from OKC’s win over Philadelphia:
Terrance Ferguson showed out
After missing Tuesday’s loss at Indiana due to personal reasons, Ferguson returned to the starting lineup against Philadelphia.
🚨 Close game alert 🚨
T-Ferg still hot.
👀 on @FOXSportsOK pic.twitter.com/kPUTNqg7B7— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) November 16, 2019
He scored a season-high 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field, including hitting on five of his seven attempts from beyond the arc. Ferguson had only hit five three-pointers combined in the previous seven games.
After the game, he credited his daughter and Steven Adams for his success.
The Thunder’s third-quarter struggles continue
As noted by Maddie Lee of The Oklahoman, Oklahoma City’s “trend of falling behind” in the third quarter continued once again Friday night against the 76ers.
The Thunder took a 54-59 lead into the half, only to be outscored 34-26 in the third quarter.
Their struggles continued until the 7:20 mark of the 4th quarter when OKC trailed by nine points. From there, the Thunder closed the game on a 22-13 run to end regulation tied at 107.
Free throw shooting helped seal the victory
The Thunder aren’t known as automatic from the free-throw line. Far from it.
But when it mattered against Philadelphia, OKC knocked them down.
Oklahoma City was 8-for-8 in overtime from the line. Danilo Gallinari hit all four of his attempts, with both Chris Paul and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander making a pair each.
Both Gallinari (11-for-11) and Paul (12-for-12) were perfect on the night. Per the Thunder, it’s the first time in the organization’s history that two players were perfect from the free-throw line with more than ten attempts each.
Combined 23 for 23 from the free throw line. That's the first time in OKC history that 2 players were perfect from the FT line with 10+ attempts each. pic.twitter.com/DpKNWK3NDF
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) November 16, 2019
As a team, the Thunder shot 85.7% from the line, connecting on 35-of-41 free throws.
Ferguson said it was his daughter’s first home game, calling his performance in the win over Philadelphia “one for the books”.
Terrance Ferguson scored a season-high 19 points in the Thunder’s 127-119 overtime win over Philadelphia Friday night.
His performance alone was something to be excited about, but there was one thing that made it even more special – his daughter was there to see it.
Ferguson told reporters in the locker room afterward that it was his daughter’s first home game.
“It was my daughter’s first home game, so I was excited for that,” Ferguson said. “One for the books.”
Terrance Ferguson scored 19 points and shot 5-7 from 3 tonight.
“It was my daughter’s first home game, so I was excited for that. So, one for the books.” pic.twitter.com/FyzeaucQPq
— Maddie Lee (@maddie_m_lee) November 16, 2019
Back in the starting lineup against the 76ers, Ferguson scored 19 points and hit on seven of his nine field-goal attempts, including a 5-of-7 mark from the three-point line.
🚨 Terrance Ferguson Alert 🚨
💦💦💦 to take the lead in OT. pic.twitter.com/9QIw5GTtBr— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) November 16, 2019
As noted by Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman, prior to the win over the 76ers, Ferguson “made only five 3-pointers in his last seven games.”
According to Mussatto, Ferguson also credited his big night to Steven Adams.
“It was Steve-O as well,” he said of Thunder center Steven Adams. “Every time I caught the ball, Steve-O was like, ‘shoot it.’ I don’t have no choice but to shoot it when Steve-O tells me to.”
Ferguson missed Tuesday’s 111-85 loss to the Pacers for personal reasons as he did not travel with the Thunder to Indiana due to a custody hearing regarding his daughter.
Previewing Saturday’s Milwaukee Bucks at Indiana Pacers sports betting odds and lines, with NBA matchup analysis and picks.
The Milwaukee Bucks (8-3) travel to meet the Indiana Pacers (7-5) Saturday at 7:00 p.m. ET. We analyze the Bucks-Pacers odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.
Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.
Bucks: SF Khris Middleton (thigh) will be sidelined until early December.
Pacers: SG Malcolm Brogdon (back) is listed as questionable to face his former team, while C Myles Turner (ankle) is also a question mark.
NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 9:30 a.m. ET.
Bucks 113, Pacers 100
PASS. The Bucks (-228) are rather expensive, as you need to lay more than two times the money for a meager return.
New to sports betting? Every $1 wagered that Milwaukee wins profits $0.44 if the Bucks prevail. (Ex: Bet $10 to win $4.40, $20 to win $8.80, $22.80 to win $10).
Take the BUCKS (-4.5, –129) for this road battle, although you’ll be ‘bucking’ some trends. Milwaukee is just 3-7 against the spread in the past 10 road games, and 0-4 ATS in the past four games overall. They are 18-7-1 ATS in the past 26 games inside the Central Division.
The favorite is also 8-2 ATS in the past 10 meetings in this series. However, for the Pacers (+4.5, +105), they’re 0-6-1 ATS in the past seven against teams with a winning overall record, and 3-10 ATS in the last 13 games against teams with a winning percentage of .600 or better.
The UNDER 225.5 (+105) is a decent bargain, especially at plus-money. The Under has connected in five straight meetings in Indianapolis, and six of the past seven in this series. The Under is also 3-1-1 in the past five home games for the Pacers, too.
Want some action on this game? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips and advice, visit SportsbookWire.com.
Follow @JoeWilliamsVI and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.
Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.
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