Schedule
Pacers lead series 1-0 (best of seven)
Game 1: Pacers 107, Hawks 90
Game 2: Wednesday at Pacers, 7:30 p.m., FSSO, NBA TV, 680, 93.7, 98.9
Game 3: Saturday at Hawks, 7 p.m., FSSO, ESPN
Game 4: Monday at Hawks, TBA, FSSO
Game 5: May 1 at Pacers, TBA, FSSO*
Game 6: May 3 at Hawks, TBA, SPSO*
Game 7: May 5 at Pacers, TBA*
* if necessary
Certainly there are adjustments to be made following the Hawks’ lopsided opening playoff loss.
Larry Drew just isn’t in the mood to share them.
A day after the Hawks lost both the physical and scoreboard battles in a Game 1 defeat to the Pacers, the Hawks coach on Monday would not reveal any planned changes. Drew would not get specific about the game plan, possible starting lineup changes or whether Josh Smith would get more of the defensive assignment on Pacers All-Star Paul George.
The Hawks lost the series opener 107-90 on Sunday. From a statistical standpoint, the Pacers shot 20 more free throws and had 16 more rebounds. Drew reiterated that he would not allow his team to use the free-throw discrepancy as a crutch, although he was troubled with player reaction to calls.
He was much more concerned with how the Pacers “manhandled” his team.
“I was watching it on film on the plane ride back and I couldn’t believe my eyes, to be perfectly honest,” Drew said. “… This is playoff basketball and that cannot happen. It absolutely cannot happen. You have to be a little bit more focused, particularly playing a team like that because we already know who they are and what they bring.”
Drew and several players said Monday that while there were defensive issues, the game plan was not at issue. The Pacers brought a physical presence to the floor and the Hawks did not respond.
“They dictated the tempo,” Hawks reserve Dahntay Jones said. “They dictated how the game was going to be played, the physicality of the game. They hit first. They attacked first. They dominated the paint first. So, it started with how aggressive they started and continued throughout the course of the game.”
DeShawn Stevenson lamented how the Hawks allowed George a triple-double (23 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds) and how George Hill shot 70 percent from the field (7 of 10, including 3 of 4 from 3-point range). He singled out the play of the Hawks guards for not helping the big men on the boards.
Drew answered only “possibly” when asked if he would change the starting lineup or if Smith, who was put on George before spraining his ankle, would be assigned to the forward.
There were other issues for the Hawks. They failed to get back defensively on several occasions and allowed 12 fast-break points. They were out-hustled and gave up 19 second-chance points. The Pacers got five rebounds — all offensive — from Tyler Hansbrough in 17 minutes. They fouled the Pacers’ jump shooters too often.
“There are some things that we have to be better at,” Drew said. “Although I will say — and I made the point to the players — this is nothing about X’s and O’s. I thought what we did from a coverage standpoint, when we executed our coverages, we were pretty good. It’s the other areas that we have to clean up and get better.
“Getting better means more of a physicality to the game. I’m not saying play dirty but I’m saying Indiana clearly made the first hit on everything we did, particularly going to the glass, loose balls, 50-50 balls, setting screens. We succumbed to that.”
The best-of-seven series resumes with Game 2 in Indianapolis on Wednesday.
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