NBA: Pacers win brawl-marred bout against the Warriors

Stephen Curry's season-high 38 points were not enough to lift the Golden State Warriors over the Indiana Pacers, as the home team triumphed 108-97, in a game that saw a fight break out amongst players, Tuesday (Wednesday, PHL time) at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Physical play between Roy Hibbert of the Pacers and David Lee of the Warriors resulted in the two going at each other. As other players from both sides attempted to step in and separate the pair, it actually made the situation worse, as the jostling of bodies resulted in the scrum moving into the front row of seats. Double technical fouls were called on Hibbert and Lee, Hibbert and Klay Thompson, and David West and Stephen Curry. The two technical fouls resulted in Hibbert being ejected, and his replacement, Ian Mahinmi, split his charities to put his side up by 11, 96-85, 6:10 left in the game. Six straight from West, followed by a pull-up jumper by Paul George extended their advantage to 104-87, but the Warriors responded with triples from Curry and Thompson, to make it an 11-point affair with 2:40 to play. Golden State was unable to keep up their momentum though, as a missed jumper by Jarret Jack, followed by a turnover, meant the Pacers scored four unanswered. Warriors head coach Mark Jackson then pulled out his starters with 1:34 to play, and his side looking at a 13-point deficit. It was the Pacers' fifth straight win, improving their record to 36-21, while the Warriors saw their three-game streak snapped, for a 33-24 card. The Warriors began the game by going up 12-6, but Indiana broke a 22-all tie with a 9-3 blitz, to go up 31-25 at the end of the first quarter. Golden State jumped back ahead following a barrage of triples from Curry and Thompson, 38-32, in the second quarter, but they proceeded to concede a 20-3 run to the Pacers, good for a 52-41 hole. The visiting team however, was able to employ an 12-2 blast of their own, to trail by just a point at the break, 54-53. Undaunted, the Pacers were up by 12 anew, 85-73, at the end of the third, thanks to a 10-of-20 shooting clip in the quarter, setting the stage for the fight in the final period. David West finished with 28 points, seven rebounds and three steals. George Hill had 23 points and seven assists, while Paul George tallied 21 markers, 11 rebounds, three swipes and a block. Roy Hibbert compiled with 13 points, nine rebounds and five blocks prior to his ejection. Curry had just two rebounds, four assists and three steals, to go with his 38 points. Klay Thompson and David Lee had 13 and 12 markers, respectively, while Carl Landry and Jarret Jack led the Golden State bench with 11 apiece. The Warriors showed some sloppy play, turning the ball over 20 times, compared to just 12 from the home team. - AMD, GMA News