Hibbert's development propelling Pacers

INDIANAPOLIS - When the subject of masked man Roy Hibbert came up, Frank Vogel couldn't resist.

"He's a hard-nosed guy," said the young head coach, failing to suppress a smile.

It's no joke, however, that Hibbert's steady, significant development has been integral to the Indiana Pacers' surprising rise in the Eastern Conference.

In his fourth season, the 7-2 center from Georgetown is averaging 14.4 points, 9.9 rebounds and 1.71 blocked shots while shooting 53 percent from the floor. He is just one rebound away from averaging a double-double, something no Indiana center has done since the franchise moved into the NBA in 1976.

"He definitely affects the game," Boston Coach Doc Rivers said. "With his size, he's just a tough guy to guard. And his defense has really improved. I think that's what keeps him on the floor longer now. He's one of the best bigs in the league for what he does."

Hibbert made the two biggest plays in Indiana's 95-90 victory in Chicago Wednesday night. With the Pacers up 92-90 in the final minute, Derrick Rose turned the corner and appeared on his way to the game-tying layup before Hibbert stepped across the lane to block his path. Rose instead dished to Brian Scalabrine, who missed a corner 3-pointer.

After the Pacers chased down the rebound, Hibbert found himself alone under the basket and Paul George fed him for the clinching dunk with 13 seconds left. That capped a night in which Hibbert scored 20, had eight rebounds and blocked four shots.

He seems to have taken well to the mask he must wear to protect a broken nose sustained in the first half in Los Angeles on Sunday. With no mask available that night, he returned to the game with gauze in his nostrils to stanch the bleeding and scored 16 of his 18 points in the second half as the Pacers rallied for a 98-96 victory.

After getting the better of Andrew Bynum, he donned the mask and put up 16 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks against Orlando's Dwight Howard but the Magic made 13 3-pointers and won 102-83, Indiana's first loss at home.

Early in his career, Hibbert was plagued by foul trouble, inconsistency and a tendency to let his emotions get the best of him. He would let a bad game linger and become two or three in a row before shaking the hangover. After adding 15 pounds of muscle in the weightroom during the offseason and learning relaxation exercises to keep his mind right, Hibbert has been much more assertive in the lane both offensively and defensively.

"I'm learning to use (his strength) a little bit more," he said. "I've been able to do things I haven't been able to do, get offensive rebounds, finish in the post a lot stronger a lot stronger than I have before, not getting knocked off (the block). The biggest thing for me is maintaining. After every home game, win or lose, I lift with the strength coach Shawn Windle on heavy lower body stuff. I'm usually the last one leaving here after a game."

Hibbert's progress has been steady, methodical and as relentless as his work ethic. Since being acquired in a draft night trade with Toronto (in a package for Jermaine O'Neal) in 2008, Hibbert has been a thorough professional. He immediately came to Indianapolis and began working on his body and game, and it seems as though he rarely has left in the years since.

His scoring and rebounding averages have climbed every year and his fouls-per-minute have decreased. His consistency has been particularly encouraging. Hibbert has scored double figures in 15 of the 17 games; in the other two, he scored nine. He already has eight double-doubles.

"He's just playing more physical," Vogel said. "There's no softness to his game whatsoever. On the offensive glass he's trying to punish bodies. In the post, he's not setting for turnaround jump shots, he's trying to not only be physical when he has the ball but doing his work early -- his duck-ins and his early seals have been better than they have been in the past. He's taking advantage of the extra muscle he put on in the offseason."

When Vogel replaced Jim O'Brien last Jan. 30, one of his most significant philosophical shifts was to convert an offense that relied heavily on 3-point shooting to one that played through the post. Hibbert, who struggled to cope with O'Brien's harsh criticism, thrived under the more positive Vogel and the Pacers improved dramatically with the inside-out approach.

They've gone 32-22 under Vogel, who uses the phrase "smashmouth basketball" to define the team's philosophical underpinning.

Occasionally that can result in a smashed nose, as well.

The mask is temporary. The progress is not.