Both the Indiana Pacers and Memphis Grizzlies are a pair of teams who do not appear to be in playoff contention, although Indiana – despite the loss of Mike Dunleavy and leading scorer Danny Granger – seem to be playing better ball as of late.  Both teams hooked up at Conseco Fieldhouse Wednesday to a 2/3 filled arena so the game wouldn’t exactly remind you of a sellout at Oracle Arena or even a tilt at MSG.  Indiana, despite shooting only 46.9% from the floor, had a weapon that they put to use with great effect – the 3-point shot.  They went 11-of-23 from beyond the arc, which would make the difference as Indiana defeated Memphis 104-99.

Both teams shot well as the Pacers outscored the Grizzlies in both the first and second quarters as they took a 60-51 lead to their locker room at halftime.  Memphis managed to cut their deficit to 65-59 on a O.J. Mayo basket, but back-to-back scores by Brandon Rush and Marquis Daniels enabled Indiana to push their lead to 69-59 with just over 7 minutes left in the third quarter.  The Pacers would go into the fourth quarter with an 82-76 lead.

Indiana held a 93-86 lead with six minutes remaining, but Memphis owuld tie the game on 2 free throws by Quinton Ross with 2:23 left to go; The Pacers’ Troy Murphy scored on a putback to help regain the lead, then the Grizzlies’ Rudy gay was called for an offensive foul.  After both teams changed possessions, Daniels hit a short jumper with 47 ticks left on the game clock to make it 99-95. 

Mayo would miss a jumper with 30 seconds remaining and the Pacers rebounded; after the Pacers’ Jarrett Jack made one of 2 free throws, Marc Gasol made a layup for Memphis, making it 100-97 with 23 seconds left.  T.J. Ford made one of 2 free throws for Indiana, but Gasol dunked to make it 101-99 with just 14 second remaining.  Jack missed the second of two free throws with 11.6 seconds left to go to give the Grizzlies the chance to tie the game.  But Gay would miss a missed a 3-pointer and Ford drained a pair of free throws to seal the win for the Pacers. 

Jack and Ford shared high scoring honors for Indiana with 20 points each – with Jack grabbing 3 rebounds, dishing out 6 assists along with 2 steals while Ford hit a pair of 3-pointers, grabbed 4 rebounds, dished out 2 assists along with a blocked shot but also committed 5 turnovers; Murphy notched a double-double as he added 13 with 12 rebounds.

Memphis was led by Gasol with 22 points, 15 rebounds and a steal while Mayo added 21 with 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and a blocked shot but also turning the ball over 5 times.  Indiana (25-35) plays again on Friday when they host the Boston Celtics while Memphis (15-42) returns home to host the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday.