Pacers' George, Ellis have been much bigger scorers in second half

By foxsports
Published

Though they are both coming off a rough shooting night against Cleveland on Monday, Indiana Pacers stars Paul George and Monta Ellis remain two of the most lethal shooters in the game as crunch time closes in.

George was 3 of 15 from the field against the Cavaliers and Ellis was 5 of 18. But the Pacers' top two scorers (George at 23.2 points per game, Ellis at 14.3) have, for the season, been at their best in second halves of games. In fact, no one in the NBA has been better.

LARGEST INCREASE IN POINTS PER GAME, FIRST HALF TO SECOND HALF*

Player, Team First half Second half Differential
Paul George, Indiana Pacers
 9.7 13.4 +3.7
Monta Ellis, Indiana Pacers
 5.6 8.4 +2.8
Jimmy Butler, Chicago Bulls 9.6 12.1 +2.5
Zach LaVine, Minnesota Timberwolves 5.2 7.6 +2.4
Brandon Knight, Phoenix Suns
 8.6 10.9 +2.3
* Minimum 75 percent of team games      

Indiana is coming off back-to-back overtime games, bringing them to six for the season, tied for most in the NBA. Alas, they have lost five of those games, tied for the most in franchise history.

MOST OVERTIME GAMES THIS SEASON

Team Number Record
Dallas Mavericks 6 5-1
Utah Jazz 6
 3-3
Chicago Bulls 6 2-4
Indiana Pacers 6 1-5
Orlando Magic
 6 1-5

The Pacers have won 16 of their last 22 meetings with the Brooklyn Nets, their opponent Wednesday night. They have won eight of their last 11 road games against the Nets, though their most recent visit resulted in a 111-106 defeat on March 31, 2015.

PACERS' BEST RECORD AGAINST ANY OPPONENT SINCE 2009-10

Opponent Record Win percentage
Charlotte Hornets
 17-4 .810
New Orleans Pelicans 10-3 .769
Detroit Pistons 19-7 .731
Brooklyn Nets 16-6
 .727
Washington Wizards 17-7 .708

Indiana does considerable damage after its opponents' mistakes, outscoring them by more than three points per game off turnovers.

LARGEST DIFFERENTIAL IN POINTS OFF TURNOVERS PER GAME THIS SEASON

Team
 Own Opponents Differential
Boston Celtics 19.2 15.1 +4.1
Indiana Pacers 20.3 17.2 +3.1
Toronto Raptors 17.4 14.6 +2.8
Washington Wizards 18.3 15.5 +2.8
Atlanta Hawks 19.1 16.4 +2.7