Hawks Look To Upset Pacers Again

Jeff Teague led the Hawks to an upset victory in Game 1. Will it be the same story on Tuesday?

After pulling off the shock-that-might-not-have-been-a-shock on Saturday, the Atlanta Hawks will look to take a two-game lead over the Indiana Pacers when the two sides lock horns again Tuesday night.

Tip-off at Bankers Life Fieldhouse is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET.

Eighth-seeded Atlanta got the better of Indiana in the series opener at the weekend, riding a seemingly unstoppable Jeff Teague to a 101-93 victory.

Repeatedly taking advantage of the Pacers’ lackadaisical defense and slashing to the basket, Teague tallied 28 points, a career playoff high. Paul Millsap chipped in for 25 points while DeMarre Carroll registered a double-double (12pts, 10rebs).

Paul George recorded his own double-double for the Pacers, scoring 24 points and pulling down 10 boards. Lance Stephenson added 19 points and seven rebounds. The rest of the Pacers proved quiet though.

Roy Hibbert and David West struggled to contend with Atlanta’s front line; the Hawks’ forwards outscored the Pacers to the tune of 40-23. Hawks’ center Pero Antic, who took five shots from behind the three-point line, proved a matchup nightmare for Hibbert, who over the last two months has been a shell of the player he was over the last three years.

A 30-16 burst in the third quarter proved to be the difference in the game, giving Atlanta more than enough to fend off the Pacers late in the game and take a 1-0 in the best-of-seven series.

Now the Hawks will look to pull off a second straight upset over the top-seeded Pacers and head back to Atlanta with a 2-0 lead and a huge edge in the series.

Pacers’ head coach Frank Vogel meanwhile will need to flick the switch and set his team into do-or-die mode. That might require some brainwashing though.

The Pacers will be only too well aware that in all five previous postseason meetings between the two sides (1987, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2013) the winner of the opening game has gone on to win the series each time.

If that’s not bad enough, in their last 16 visits to Phillips Arena, the Pacers are just 2-14. Vogel would do well to shrink that timespan to the last three visits, of which Indiana has taken two victories.

Atlanta can expect to face a different level of defense on Tuesday. Reports suggest George will look to guard Teague and limit his scoring. Whether or not Hibbert continues to guard Antic remains to be seen.

Atlanta Hawks vs. Indiana Pacers odds for 04/22/2014

Despite Saturday’s disappointing loss, Indiana (-333) opened as a comfortable favorite over Atlanta (+292) on the moneyline.

The spread opened at 7 and has remained fairly steady, although you can find the extra half-point if you look around the sportsbooks.

The opening game saw Atlanta cover the spread (+8) in the upset victory. That result now sees the Hawks sitting with a 3-1-1 ATS record against the Pacers this season.

The total opened at 187, slightly higher than Saturday’s opening game (186) which saw the over pay out.

The over has now paid out in the last three meetings between the sides and 10 of the last 14 head-to-head showdowns. Each of Atlanta’s last five trips to Indiana has also seen the over cash in, something bettors are sure to want to keep in mind before betting on this one.

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