INDIANAPOLIS | Flip Saunders threw darn near the entire kitchen sink at the Indiana Pacers on Friday night at Conseco Fieldhouse.
He tried the traditional lineup (although it was his third different one of the season thanks to injuries). He tried a small lineup. He played Gilbert Arenas on the ball. He played him off the ball. He used all 12 players at his disposal.
But none of that did the trick. The Wizards put on a listless performance and fell 102-86, their third straight loss. Although the score indicated otherwise, the Pacers’ play couldn’t exactly be described as dominant.
The Pacers only shot 40 percent, only narrowly out-rebounded the Wizards 51-47 and had three more assists (19-16). But 19 Washington turnovers, which led to 22 Indiana points, and a 27-for-36 showing from the foul line opposed to Washington’s 15-for-26 were the ingredients for a blowout.
Danny Granger’s 22 points led five double-digit scorers for the Pacers. Caron Butler scored 24 points for the Wizards on 8-for-21 shooting. Arenas managed just 13 points on only 10 shots. Brendan Haywood pulled down a career-high 19 rebounds to go with nine points, and Randy Foye scored 16 points off the bench.
Georgetown product Roy Hibbert had 12 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks for Indiana.
Note — With a second-quarter 3-pointer, Arenas surpassed the 10,000-point mark for his career. He now has 10,004 points on his nine-year NBA resume.
• Mike Jones can be reached at mjones@washingtontimes.com.
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