Indiana rolls to 8-0 record
INDIANAPOLIS—The Indiana Pacers remained the NBA’s only unbeaten team this season after Paul George scored 23 points and Lance Stephenson had the first triple-double of his career in a 95-79 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday.
Indiana became the NBA’s seventh team to open the season with eight wins and no losses since 2000—two more wins than the club’s previous best start. And they followed a familiar script in the battle between last season’s conference runner-ups by dominating the glass, dominating the second half and divvying up top honors.
Stephenson finished with 13 points, 11 rebounds and a career-high 12 assists. George Hill scored 13 points and Roy Hibbert added five more blocks to his NBA-leading total.
Memphis was led by Marc Gasol with 15 points and Zach Randolph with 12.
San Antonio rolled to an easy 109-85 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers as Danny Green scored 18 points and Tony Parker had 14.
The defending Western Conference champions are off to a 7-1 start following consecutive wins in New York and Philadelphia.
Evan Turner scored 20 points and Spencer Hawes had 17 for the Sixers, who couldn’t give coach Brett Brown a better effort in his first game against his former team.
Atlanta’s Al Horford scored 24 points as the Hawks handed Charlotte Bobcats coach Steve Clifford a 103-94 loss in his first game back since undergoing a heart procedure.
Clifford missed Charlotte’s game last Friday night against the New York Knicks after having two stents placed in his heart.
Jeff Teague had 14 points and 12 assists, while Cartier Martin chipped in 16 points.
At Boston, Avery Bradley scored 24 points as the Celtics beat the Orlando Magic for the second time in four days with a 120-105 win.
Arron Afflalo had 18 points and seven assists for Orlando, which dropped its 16th straight road game. AP
OTHER RESULTS: Clippers 109, Timberwolves 107; Bulls 96, Cavaliers 81; Rockets 110, Raptors 104, OT; Blazers 109, Pistons 103; Nuggets 100, Jazz 81
