Pacers vs. Knicks: Indiana Suffers a Very Strange Loss in the Big Apple

Thousands gathered for New Year's Eve to watch the ball drop in New York City. There was something magical in the air. Whatever it was, it was still there today, as one of the strangest games in Indiana Pacers history took place at the Garden.

The Pacers took 99 shot attempts in their game against the Knicks on Sunday afternoon. They pulled down 12 more rebounds, had more points in the paint, more fast break points, more assists and more steals, yet they lost the game, 98-92.

Darren Collison finished with 22 points, six assists and five rebounds, and Danny Granger had 25 points and a career-high 17 rebounds for Indiana. Jeff Foster started the game at center in place of Roy Hibbert, but he ended up fouling out of the game.

The Knicks not only had six players score in double figures, but they also went to the free-throw line 40 times. They were 29 of 40 at the line while the Pacers were just 11 of 19. Yes, the Knicks actually made 10 more free throws than the Pacers attempted as a team.

Only the Pacers could shoot the ball 99 times and manage just 92 points in a loss.

Indiana actually hasn't reached the century mark in a game since their December 17 victory in Cleveland. The offense has been the main problem this year. The defense had been the problem in recent years, but it appears to have flip-flopped this year. In the last game, rookie Paul George came off the bench and sparked the team on both sides of the ball. Today he played just nine minutes, recording five fouls.

The Pacers started Mike Dunleavy and Granger against the Knicks. Granger had a good game, pulling down a career-high 17 rebounds to go with his 25 points, but Dunleavy struggled in this one. He shot just two of seven from the floor, missed all four of his three-point attempts and finished with just four points in 26 minutes of play.

Head coach Jim O'Brien played 11 Pacers players in this game, and every one of them ended up scoring, but it wasn't enough to beat the Knicks.

Of course in a game like this, there has to be a half-court shot at some point right? Wilson Chandler did the honors at the end of the third quarter, picking up a loose ball and rattling it through the rim as time expired.

Perhaps the only "normal" thing associated with this game was that it was another loss for Indiana. The Pacers have now lost four of their last five games. They will return home for the week and will have some good time to rest and improve before they welcome the San Antonio Spurs to town. They will have a home game with the Spurs on Friday night, before heading to Atlanta for a Saturday night game.

Basically, the Pacers will have the next four days off, then face a tough weekend. They really need to use this time to work on some of the weak spots with this team. There are a lot of holes to fill, and they won't be able to fix them all, but they need to get better on the offensive end.

Everyone needs to improve—nobody is exempt on this team. Everyone has struggled this season at some point, and the past few weeks have been brutal for this team. It will be interesting to see if they have changed come Friday night.