Pacers Open Preseason with 103-90 Win

Oct 7, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert (55) posts up against Minnesota Timberwolves center Gorgui Dieng (5) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

The Indiana Pacers opened the 2014-15 preseason with a 103-90 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, and there were plenty of things to be happy about on the Pacers’ side of things. Indiana started newcomers Rodney Stuckey and C.J. Miles, and both came through with good games. George Hill looked like a completely different player from last season, and both David West and Roy Hibbert looked solid in limited playing time.

George Hill led the way for the Pacers with 17 points on 6-9 shooting, and also chipped in with seven assists, six rebounds, and two steals. Stuckey scored nine points on 4-7 shooting, while Miles chipped in with seven points and played excellent defense. Hibbert scored eight points and grabbed five rebounds in the win, while West scored two points to go along with four rebounds and three assists.

Rookie big man Shayne Whittington led the Pacers’ second unit with 11 points on 5-5 shooting, and looked extremely solid all night long. Lavoy Allen also came through with a big game, scoring 10 points to go along with seven rebounds and three blocked shots. Damjan Rudez scored eight points off the bench, while Donald Sloan (7), Arinze Onuaku (6), C.J. Fair (5), and Luis Scola (4) also made their mark on the offensive end of the court. Chris Singleton scored four points, Solomon Hill scored three points, and Adonis Thomas scored two points to round out the scorers for Indiana.

Andrew Wiggins made his Timberwolves debut, scoring 18 points on on 4-11 shooting, and also made 8-10 from the foul line. Minnesota looks to have gotten a very, very good player from the Kevin Love trade. Gorgui Dieng scored 16 points to go along with 10 rebounds, and Thaddeus Young scored 12 points in his Minnesota debut. Corey Brewer rounded out the double digit scorers for Minnesota with 10 points.

Needless to say, it was nice to see the Pacers open up their preseason with a win at home. There were some very good signs, especially the play of the new Pacers and George Hill. Hibbert looked stronger and much quicker with the ball, and he was very much engaged int the game which was also a good sign.

Indiana now looks ahead to Friday night, when they will host the Orlando Magic for their second preseason game.