After a great finish to last night's game against the Bulls, Indiana is now 3 1/2 games behind Chicago for the final spot in the East. With only seven games to go, the chances are slim, but at least they still have some hope.
First, let me get to the game. What a finish last night! Normally, this would have been a game that the Pacers didn't win, but I think they wanted revenge for losing in Chicago this past weekend, and I think they knew they HAD to win this one. Some might say, "Too little, too late", but I'm not buying into that crap right now. I've gone all season with this team teasing me with last second losses and late game heroics, so I'm not about to give up on them now. Danny Granger provided the go ahead three with 42 seconds left last night and then TJ Ford sealed the victory with about 6 seconds left with a shot in the lane over his defender.
Here is a look at the current Eastern Conference Standings:
| W | L | PCT | GB | ||
| 1 | y-Cleveland | 61 | 13 | 0.82 | - |
| 2 | y-Orlando | 55 | 18 | 0.75 | 5 ½ |
| 3 | y-Boston | 56 | 19 | 0.75 | 5 ½ |
| 4 | x-Atlanta | 43 | 32 | 0.57 | 18 ½ |
| 5 | Miami | 39 | 35 | 0.53 | 22 |
| 6 | Philadelphia | 38 | 35 | 0.52 | 22 ½ |
| 7 | Detroit | 36 | 38 | 0.49 | 25 |
| 8 | Chicago | 36 | 40 | 0.47 | 26 |
| Charlotte | 34 | 40 | 0.46 | 27 | |
| Milwaukee | 32 | 43 | 0.43 | 29 ½ | |
| Indiana | 32 | 43 | 0.43 | 29 ½ | |
Pacer's Remaining Schedule:
| Date | Opponent | Time |
| San Antonio | 7:00 PM | |
| @ Oklahoma City | 7:00 PM | |
| Toronto | 7:00 PM | |
| @ Atlanta | 7:30 PM | |
| Detroit | 7:00 PM | |
| Cleveland | 7:00 PM | |
| Milwaukee | 8:00 PM |
And here is Chicago's Remaining Schedule:
| New Jersey | 2:00 PM | |
| NY Knicks | 8:30 PM | |
| Philadelphia | 8:00 PM | |
| Charlotte | 8:30 PM | |
| @ Detroit | 7:30 PM | |
| Toronto | 8:00 PM |
By just looking at the two schedule's on paper, Chicago has the easier of the two to finish up. However, Philadelphia is fighting for playoff seeding and Detroit and Charlotte are fighting for the playoff spots as well. Detroit is only one game ahead of Chicago and Charlotte is one game behind Chicago, so those games should be interesting to say the least.
The one thing that is in Indiana's favor is the fact that some of the teams they play will be in rest mode for the playoffs. San Antonio has had some injury issues this year, so they might be wise to go ahead and start playing their starters less and less. Atlanta and Cleveland already have their spots locked up and Detroit could have a spot locked up by the time the Pacers play them, so they might be resting some players as well.
BUT, no matter what their opponents do, this comes down to Indiana needing to win games. They have to play each game with 100% focus and with a flawlessness that they really haven't played with all season. The playoffs are within reach, they just have to grind out these last seven games to get there.
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I couldn't catch the game last night because I was at work, but apparently it was a true heartbreaker for the Bulls. Hoping for at least 4-2 out of the Bulls in the home stretch.