Here's Bruno's Scouting Report which focuses on the home court, since 10 of the next 13 games are at the Fieldhouse. This is a big homestand and while winning a few of these games would be fun and exciting, unless they put together a 10-3 stretch, a few Ws over good teams at this point would feel hollow. We saw the team rise up earlier in the season, beating Utah, New Orleans, and Dallas. But when those big wins are followed up by losses to Seattle, Minnesota (before they were playing well), and now Miami, what's the point? In fact wins over the Pistons, Magic, and/or Spurs now would just leave me shaking my head, and using the worn-out phrase, "if only" over and over again.
Speaking of "if only" moments, Mark Montieth takes us back to the Tayshaun Prince block of Reggie Miller and the impact of that one play on the Pacers. Come on, Mark, aren't we suffering enough? This is piling on.
For some great Pistons' blogs check out Detroit Bad Boys, Need 4 Sheed, and Pistons Nation Blog.
Here's what the efficiency numbers say:
| Team | Pace | Off.Eff. | Def.Eff. |
|---|---|---|---|
| IND | 97.1(2nd) | 105.6(20th) | 107.3(12th) |
| DET | 86.4(30th) | 112.4(4th) | 104.5(4th) |
Projected Starters
| PACERS | pos. | PISTONS |
|---|---|---|
| Mike Dunleavy | F | Antonio McDyess |
| Danny Granger | F | Tayshaun Prince |
| Troy Murphy | C | Rasheed Wallace |
| Kareem Rush | G | Rip Hamilton |
| Jamaal Tinsley | G | Chauncey Billups |
Feel free to leave your thoughts on the game in the comments.