Every neighborhood in Indy has a dangerous mix of dry pavement, snow and ice right now that can quickly turn your day into a mess if you don't pay attention to what's ahead. The Pacers appeared to hit a patch of ice on the road last night in Utah as they struggled with basics - taking care of the ball and defending - which took control of the game out of their hands.

As Nathan mentioned, by straying off course from their winning formula, the Pacers put several other factors in play for the strange finish that left the blue and gold at the mercy of the refs, which rarely works well on the road. Now the Pacers need a boost to get back on track because with the upcoming schedule, if they continue to spin their wheels they will quickly find themselves deeper in the ditch.

Consider the next five games include another tough road game in Denver, then home for a stretch that includes Miami, Chicago and Atlanta in rapid fire succession. There is no time for doubts to start creeping in and confidence to start waning.

This has been a team that normally responds well to this type of adversity, but even playing well in some of their upcoming games doesn't guarantee wins. After losing their way defensively the past couple of games, the Pacers may feel even more pain for letting these last two games go.

At least, the loss in Utah gave us this quote from Roy Hibbert:

"Physics clearly states an object stays in motion unless something hits it," a frustrated Roy Hibbert said. "Something hit it and it should have been out of bounds. I went to college and I got a degree. I don't know about some of these other guys."

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