Tip-Off: 6 PM CT
Location: Bankers Life Fieldhouse
Television: FSOK
Radio: WWLS 98.1FM OKC The Sports Animal
Twitter: Follow @TheThunderGuys for live-tweets during the game
The first time these two teams met the end result was not very close. Oklahoma City and Indiana battled back and forth in the first half, but the Thunder had a rare dominant third quarter in which they opened up the lead and came away with a 114-96 victory. Since then, however, the teams have gone down very different paths.
The Thunder has been under .500 for nearly a month now, while the Pacers have improved to 16-11 thanks to a current four-win streak. Paul George makes his return to Indiana tonight, so he expects to be greeted by a hoard of boos. If George can stay focused and not let the emotion of the game get to him, he could come up big and fuel the Thunder to a solid win.
Projected Starters
Thunder
- PG: Russell Westbrook
- SG: Alex Abrines
- SF: Paul George
- PF: Carmelo Anthony
- C: Steven Adams
Pacers
- PG: Darren Collison
- SG: Victor Oladipo
- SF: Bojan Bogdanovic
- PF: Thaddeus Young
- C: Myles Turner
Injuries
Thunder
- Andre Roberson (sprained left ankle) is out.
Pacers
- Bojan Bogdanovic (sprained left ankle) is questionable.
- Darren Collison (sore left knee) is questionable.
- Thaddeus Young (sore right thigh) questionable.
- Lance Stephenson (sprained left ankle) is questionable.
- Glenn Robinson III (sprained left ankle) is out.
- Edmond Sumner (left knee surgery rehab) is out.
Head-to-Head
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder are 9-9 against the Pacers (6-3 at home, 3-6 on the road).
- The Thunder defeated the Pacers 114-96 in Oklahoma City earlier this season on October 25th.
- In the first matchup with the Pacers this season, Russell Westbrook led the way for the Thunder with 28 points on 10/18 (55.6%) shooting from the floor, 16 assists, and 10 rebounds, and three steals.
- Paul George played one of his worst games of the season when the Thunder hosted the Pacers in October. He managed only 10 points on 4/8 (50%) shooting, one rebound, and one assist.
Game Notes
- The Thunder has won four of the last six games, while the Pacers have won four in a row.
- Oklahoma City is 5-5 in the last ten games, while Indiana is 7-3.
- Oklahoma City is 5-5 against the Eastern Conference, while Indiana is 5-6 against the Western Conference.
- Oklahoma City is 6-9 in games when they have one day of rest, while Indiana is 3-0 in games when they have two days of rest.
- Oklahoma City is 3-10 on the road, while Indiana is 10-4 at home.
- This will be Paul George’s first game in Indiana since being traded from there to Oklahoma City in June.
- Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis played for Oklahoma City last season before being traded to Indiana for Paul George.
Be sure to check out our most recent episode of “Thunder Things with the Thunder Guys.”
Article written by Zack Low. Follow @TheThunderGuys on Twitter & Instagram, and give us a like on Facebook.