Kevin Liles-USA TODAY Sports
The 109-100 loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night was more than a streak-breaking game for the Indiana Pacers. Saturday night, the second game of a back-to-back for the Pacers, was the first time that Indiana had suffered a loss in their last five contests. However, the loss seemed to be more of an indication of the struggles that the Pacers continue to have against playoff-contending teams.
Indiana only has one victory this month against a team with a winning record. Some of their worst losses this season have come against that will either be in contention for the Western conference playoffs, or teams that they may indeed have to face in the Eastern conference playoffs. If Indiana wants to make any kind of serious strides this season, rather then regress from their impressive run last year, then they cannot continue to fall behind and fall short against good teams.
The road gets no easier for Indiana in January. As they push toward the halfway point of the regular season, they will continue to face these difficult challenges against tougher teams. The Pacers have to find the resolve to regroup and rally up for these big games. If they don’t start to make an impact against more important competition this season, then the Pacers will once again find themselves as a footnote in the postseason, and a stepping stone in their conference. If the Indiana Pacers want to make some noise, then it’s officially time to get loud.
