The Indiana Pacers lost to the Milwaukee Bucks, 94-90, in a game they really should have won.

There really isn't a nice way to say it -- they choked.  After scoring 60 points in the first half to take an 8 point lead, the Pacers couldn't make a basket in the second half, spluttering down the stretch as the Bucks, who weren't shooting well either, came all the way back to take the lead in the fourth.

The loss is disappointing because it was a good chance for the Pacers to bounce back after a horrendous loss to the 76ers, especially as the Bucks were without Andrew Bogut (migraine), a player with a great track record against the Pacers.

Collison and Granger had 19 apiece, and Hibbert had another strong outing with 14 points, 12 boards, 4 assists and 6 blocks, but turnovers and poor, indecisive shot choice cost the Pacers in the end.  As a team, they had 19 turnovers, the main culprits being Granger (7) and Hibbert (6).

To me, this game demonstrated four things very clearly.

1. Despite their 2-1 start (now 2-3), the Pacers are going to struggle a lot this season.  The upcoming stretch is key because if they start piling up the losses, we might see a replay of last year, where they simply fell apart and never got back into the playoff race.

2. The margin of error this season is very small.  The Pacers need to play consistently in all facets of the game to have a chance to win every time they play, no matter how poor the opposition.

3. Collison is still uncomfortable running the point in O'Brien's system.  Is it just me or do all PGs seem to struggle with O'Brien's system?  He only had 2 assists last game and is averaging 4.4 for the season.  Last season he averaged 5.6 playing 1.5 minutes less per game.

4. The Pacers are still missing that big time shot maker, that guy the team can count on to make a basket when they truly need it.  Hibbert has the heart but he is not quite there offensively.  Granger should be the guy and has hit some big shots in the past, but so far this season he doesn't appear to have that killer instinct when the game is on the line.  Collison could very well be that guy, but O'Brien keeps going with Ford in the fourth.

Next up, a rough one against the Denver Nuggets at home.

I had a feeling this might happen.

Optimistic Indiana fans just got a shock dose of reality today as the Pacers were thoroughly embarrassed by the 76ers in Philadelphia, 101-75.

The Pacers fell behind early in the first quarter and never recovered, finding themselves down by 15 points by the end of the first quarter and 26 points down by the half.  They made a short run in the third but the 76ers put them out early in the fourth.

This was an atrocious game on both ends of the floor for the Pacers.  If their shots simply didn't fall, then fair enough, but they looked completely lost out there, lacking in both focus and energy.  It allowed the 76ers to dominate and snap up their first win of the season.

As a team the Pacers shot 31.5% from the field, led by Danny Granger's 2-14 effort.  Hibbert was 4-12, Dunleavy 2-11, and Collison 4-16.  Collison actually led the team in scoring with 11 points, but there wasn't a player out there that played particularly well.

This is of course a huge wake up call for the now 2-2 Pacers.  It was a game that said a lot about both teams.

Philadelphia was 0-4 coming into this game, coming off a heartbreaking OT loss to the Wizards just the night before.  They would have been frustrated and exhausted, and it would have been the perfect opportunity for the Pacers to jump on them early.

On the other hand, the Pacers hadn't played since their home win against the 76ers on Saturday.  They would have been well rested and confident coming up against a team they had already beaten comfortably.

Well, the 76ers simply wanted it more right from the tip.  They hustled to loose balls, grabbed offensive rebounds, disrupted the flow of the Pacers' offense and made them take tough shots, most of which the Pacers missed.

Conversely, the Pacers were pathetic out there.  There was no energy, no emotion, no execution.  Danny Granger looked half asleep on offense, throwing up bad shots galore and not getting it done on the defensive end either.  Hibbert was handcuffed by a slew of 76ers defenders and Collison still hasn't got a handle on the offense.  Dunleavy just missed open shots and lapups.

Dahntay Jones played hard, as did Solomon Jones, but the latter Jones could not do a thing to stop Elton Brand in the low post.  Brand scored on him at will, ending up with 25 points and 12 rebounds, including 5 on the offensive end.

That's enough for now.  A very disappointing effort by the Pacers after a solid start to the season.  Next up is a home game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday.  A good chance for the team to bounce back before tough games against Denver and Houston.

Great win for the Indiana Pacers at Conseco Fieldhouse against the Philadelphia 76ers tonight.  It's early, but with the 99-86 win the Pacers are now 2-1 for the season and out on top in the Central Division.

The Pacers have a bit of a break now as their next game is not until November 3rd, against the 76ers again, but this time in Philly.  No doubt the 76ers will try to return the favor at home, but I see it as a great opportunity for the Pacers to go up 3-1.

Here are some thoughts and observations from the game.

• Despite the scoreline the game was close for the first half, with Philly racing out to an early double digit lead.  The third quarter was huge for the Pacers as they outscored the opponent 27-15.

• Danny Granger top scored with 22 and was in fine form.  He didn't force his shot, which was great to see, and he knew when to rely on his teammates.

• Roy Hibbert had another off shooting night, going 5-13, but he was again an important factor, grabbing 13 boards and dishing out 5 assists.  He's coming along very nicely.

• Darren Collison is going to be a star in Indy very soon.  He's been playing surprisingly few minutes (25 last night) but he has been tearing it up and down the court.  He had one huge steal and breakaway slam that brought the house down.  If he can keep his turnovers down he should be playing at least 30 minutes a night, preferably 35.  TJ Ford has been holding his own but there's no comparison.  Collison is the future.

• I love watching Tyler Hansbrough and Josh McRoberts play.  Both are unpolished at either end of the floor, but their hustle, effort and aggressiveness cannot be understated.  The Pacers need players like them.

• Jeff Foster was put on the inactive list in the place of Dahntay Jones, but it didn't really make a difference as Jones didn't play anyway.

The Indiana Pacers obviously see something in Brandon Rush.

Despite not having come close to living up to expectations as the 13th pick of the draft from 3 years ago and having been suspended for 5 games for drug violation to start off the season, the Pacers thought it fit to pick up Rush's option to extend his contract for another year, meaning unless traded, he'll be a Pacer until at least the end of next season.

Another bold move by the front office, considering they signed Lance Stephenson, who later fell into serious legal trouble for allegedly bashing his ex-girlfriend, and they released Magnum Rolle, a second round pick they said would be a Pacer for a long time.

I think Rush has talent, but why do something that will seem like rewarding him when he's still on suspension for drug use?  Don't they realize how thin the ice is with fans right now?

Hopefully this will ignite the fire in Rush (and not his bong) and he will come out of his suspension like we've never seen him before -- in a good way.  But I just worry that this extension will allow him to remain lost for yet another year.

Great win today by the Indiana Pacers, their first of this new season.  And for the first time in a very very long time, the Pacers are at 0.500!

Anyway, they beat the Charlotte Bobcats 104-101 in a tight one, the victory only secured when former Pacer Stephen Jackson missed a wide open three with a couple of seconds left on the clock.

Some observations from my end:

1. Danny Granger had 33 points (including 6 thee-pointers) in 38 minutes.  He's off to a terrific start to the season.  If he keeps this up he'll be an All-Star again.

2. After Roy Hibbert's monster first game, he was more subdued this time, but he still racked up impressive numbers across the board -- 13 points, 8 boards, 6 assists and 4 blocks (leading the team in the last 3 categories), together with 0 turnovers.  If he keeps this up he could be joining Granger at All-Star Weekend, and be a contender for Most Improved Player.

3. Darren Collison struggled, playing just 24 minutes, with 7 points, 6 assists and 3 turnovers, and shooting just 2-10 from the floor.  Interestingly, TJ Ford got another stack of playing time, taking up the other half of the game in Collison's place, and did his best with 7 points and 4 assists, including a couple of big ones down the stretch as the Pacers was in the midst of a furious fourth quarter comeback.  What is O'Brien trying to do here, playing Ford (who is supposed to be the guy most likely to be traded in the NBA), and not AJ Price (who O'Brien said was the best player on the team earlier in the preseason)?  Is he upping TJ's trade value so he can get rid of him?  Or is TJ really going to remain a part of the team?

4. Another head scratcher was Tyler Hansbrough, who had 12 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals in 20 minutes.  He was 6-6 from the foul line, including some clinching clutch FTs with the clock winding down.  This was a player that O'Brien said this in a Q&A just before the start of the season:

Tyler has missed such a large body of work and he doesn't have Jeff's experience so Tyler is in a situation where he missed a year's training, he wasn't comfortable last year in the minutes he was getting, missed most of the five-on-five of this training camp and I just don't think he's far enough along offensively or defensively to be a rotation guy right now.

It's great to see Hansbrough get some run, especially since he played for the Tar Heels, but does that make sense to you?

5. Solomon Jones, another guy O'Brien tried to trade, played 10 minutes and racked up 4 fouls and zero rebounds.  Jeff Foster just returned back back surgery, but surely even he can do better than that.  All O'Brien is doing is reducing his trade value.  Speaking of the Joneses, Dahntay remains on the inactive list.

6. Rebounding is indeed going to be a problem as the Pacers got dominated on the boards 45-34, including giving up 15 offensive rebounds.  On the bright side, they really cut down on the turnovers, recording only 10.  If they can keep the turnovers that low every night they'll be in a position to win every night.

Next up: the home opener against the Philadelphia 76ers, who are currently 0-2 after losing to Atlanta and Miami.  Definitely a winnable game.  For both sides.