With such relatively sparse and often opponent-friendly crowds, it can be astounding to discover that Philips Arena can be such a veritable House of Horrors for certain opponents of the Atlanta Hawks. No matter which Kevin leads the way, Minnesota cannot seem to trump the Hawks in ATL. The Timberwolves scampered home on Saturday night after losing there for the 11^th consecutive season.

Atlanta’s next opponent, the Eastern Conference’s top-seeded Indiana Pacers (7:30 PM Eastern, SportSouth, FoxSports Indiana), come into tonight’s affair trying to avoid dropping their 13^th straight regular season matchup at the Highlight Factory. They’re looking for their first win here since December 2006, a time when D4L and snap music looked like the Next Big Thing. Despite boasting the East’s best record for away games (14-8), this is one of those tasks they are desperate to scratch off the “To-Do” list.

Loss Number 12 came at the hands of the Hawks just last month, a wire-to-wire 97-87 victory for Atlanta that righted their ship on the heels of a three-game losing streak. The Pacers (37-10) went on from that January 8 defeat to rattle off five straight wins, then had an up-and-down road trip featuring losses in Phoenix and Denver, before coming home only to lose to the shorthanded Suns again.

Paul George (22.8 PPG) added 12 rebounds to his obligatory 28 points against the Hawks, but got little help from his teammates (38.7 FG%), most notably his fellow All-Star Roy Hibbert (two points, 1-for-8 shooting, one block, zero free throws, four rebounds in 22 truncated minutes). Hibbert couldn’t use Al Horford as an excuse for playing poorly, and he won’t have Pero Antić (16 points) to blame if he struggles tonight, either.

“I couldn't really guard anybody,” Hibbert told the Indianapolis Star after the Hawks’ latest hex. “They didn't really have a low-post threat so the spread-five is always something difficult for me. … That was a tough guard for me.”

It will likely be Gustavo Ayón’s turn to play “Betcha Can’t Do It Like Me” versus Hibbert (1^st among NBA centers in defensive rating; 2.5 BPG, 3^rd in NBA, 12.3 PPG, 7.7 RPG), specifically if he can spread the floor a little and make Hibbert pay for camping out around the rim. Over his past seven games, Ayón’s been shooting 61.9% in the paint, but also has shot 4-for-7 outside the lane.

A would-be All-Star, Lance Stephenson (15 points and 12 rebounds versus Orlando on Monday), was unavailable to help the Pacers’ cause on January 8 due to a bruised knee. Born Ready is out to show NBA coaches they screwed up by allegedly selecting Joe Johnson in lieu of him, but he also wants to be front-and-center among ASG injury replacements if needed. The guard has a knack for crashing the boards, leading the league with four triple-doubles, twice the amount of anyone else, to go along with a team-leading 15 double-doubles.

The Pacers’ top-notch defense (41.3 opponent FG%, 1^st in NBA) keyed in on All-Star Paul Millsap (1-for-10 shooting, 4 points, 6 rebounds). But unlike Paul George, Millsap had teammates who made their opponents pay. Absent any on-the-ball pressure from Stephenson, Jeff Teague got inside and to the line freely (15 points, 6 assists, 5-for-6 FTs), and the Hawks committed only ten turnovers, shooting far more efficiently from three-point range (10-for-23 3FG) than Indiana (9-for-27 3FG).

Teague (8.0 APG and 1.0 TO/G in his last two games) still struggles with his shots, but should continue to establish a dominant role as a lead guard against Indiana’s George Hill, who has been even more deferential than usual as a passer lately (2.7 APG since January) in preference for drives and cuts to the hoop. If Teague outworks Hill, Stephenson and George will be stretched thin as help defenders for Teague and Millsap, opening things up nicely for Kyle Korver (season-high 8 FT attempts vs. Minnesota; 60.0 3FG% last 4 games) and the emerging DeMarre Carroll (15.7 PPG, 56.9 FG%, and 53.3 3FG% last 7 games).

Only two Pacers in that game drew fouls, George (3-for-4), and Danny Granger (5-for-5) in his only start of the season. Granger (36.3 FG%, 32.9 3FG%) has struggled to find a steady role in the Pacer rotation since returning to NBA action in mid-December. But he did break out with 16 points against Orlando, and must continue finding ways to get free throw opportunities (95.2 FT%) to reestablish his confidence.

Elton Brand has had to give up much of the offensive responsibilities he had over the bulk of his 15-season NBA career. But despite career-lows in offensive production (11.0 points per-36; 13.7% usage; 8.2 offensive rebounding percentage), his defensive productivity has been stellar (career-highs of 2.6 blocks and 7.1 defensive rebounds per-36). Plus, when his number is called on offense, he’s making the most of it, shooting a career-high 54.1 FG%. His input will be crucial when Ian Mahinmi (playing with a sore shoulder) comes in to spell Hibbert.

David West played through an ankle injury in last night’s win versus Orlando, but no Hawks will be feeling sorry for him tonight, not after Kevin Love came through here with his ankle woes and dropped 43 and 19.

The utterances of “Mike Who?” are getting quieter and quieter. That January Pacers-Hawks contest was the first of 11 consecutive games in which the Mikerowave, Mike Scott, put up double figures in scoring, the NBA’s longest active streak for bench players. According to STATS, LLC, Scott’s 27.0 points-per-48 is now the third highest in the league for NBA reserves logging 600 or more minutes. He’s also had three offensive rebounds in each of his last three games. Will Head Coach Frank Vogel gameplan with the intention of keeping Scott away from the rim? If so, he might be the first to do it.

Go Hawks!

~lw3