NBA Preseason-October 16th

Indiana 119, Houston 104

The Good: Danny Granger scored 22 points as the Pacers made 12-of-23 3-point attempts in beating Houston. Granger shot 7-of-13 in his 18 minutes and added 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and a block for Indiana, who scored 71 points in the first half and led by 23 points after three quarters. Houston got 14 points apiece from reserves Carl Landry and Will Conroy, and 9 points and 10 rebounds from Luis Scola. The Rockets also collected 58 rebounds as a team, including 24 offensive boards.
The Bad: Houston shot just 36.7% from the floor as a team and committed 18 turnovers, while only forcing 10. Roy Hibbert shot just 2-of-11 from the field and the Pacers only managed 63% from the free throw line.
The Ugly: It may have been good defense, it may have been bad offense, but in any event, the two teams combined for an eye-boggling 26 blocks.

New York 93, New Jersey 89

The Good: This was a pretty even game between two teams playing awful basketball. Each squad recorded a double-double and saw five players reach double-figures. David Lee and Wilson Chandler led the way for the Knicks, with 20 points and 14 rebounds, and 16 points and 8 rebounds, respectively. Yi Jianlian and rookie reserve Terrence Williams did most of the damage for the Nets, recording 21 points apiece. Jianlian added 11 rebounds, while Williams posted 8 boards.
The Bad: The Knicks had a poor shooting night in all facets, managing only 40.2% from the field, 35.7% from 3-point range, and 69.2% from the free throw line, but the Nets did them one better (or worse). New Jersey shot 38.4% from the field, 25% from 3-point range, and 65.5% from the line in the loss.
The Ugly: New York's big off-season acquisition, seventh overall pick Jordan Hill, went scoreless, missing all seven of his shots and collecting only 2 rebounds in 14 minutes.

Chicago 94, Minnesota 90

The Good: Tyrus Thomas played a stellar game off the bench for Chicago, posting 22 points, 13 rebounds, and 2 blocks in only 25 minutes. Minnesota saw five players reach double-figures, led by Corey Brewer with 20 points. Al Jefferson had a double-double for the Timberwolves, contributing 10 points, 16 rebounds, and 4 blocked shots.
The Bad: Minnesota kept the game close from the outside (42.1%) and the free throw line (82.8%), but struggled overall from the field, shooting only 34.1% from the floor. Wayne Ellington and Ryan Gomes were a large part of the problem. The pair combined to shoot just 1-for-15 from the field.
The Ugly: Kevin Love got off to a strong start for Minnesota, with 9 points and 6 rebounds in 14 minutes, but broke a bone in his left hand battling for a rebound. Love will be out 4-6 weeks for an already thin Minnesota team.

San Antonio 105, Cleveland 98

The Good: Tony Parker scored 22 points and added 7 assists for the Spurs, who posted 23 assists as a team on their 33 made field goals. Tim Duncan, Malik Hairston, and George Hill also reached double-digits for San Antonio. Cleveland had five players in double-figures led by (who else) LeBron James with 22 points. James sat out Cleveland's previous game with flu-like symptoms but hadn't contracted the H1-N1 virus. Shaquille O'Neal collected a game-high 13 rebounds for the Cavaliers.
The Bad: Shaq and reserve center Zydrunas Ilgauskas combined to shoot just 4-for-16 for Cleveland, who also got an dreadful 1-for-7 effort from Coby Karl.
The Ugly: Cleveland has struggled defensively on the perimeter in the preseason, but held the Spurs to 29.4% from the outside in this one. However, as a team, Cleveland only accumulated 3 steals and 2 blocks.

Phoenix 115, Philadelphia 113

The Good: The Suns had five players in double-figures, and Amare Stoudemire notched a double-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 blocks in the win. Reserve Jared Dudley totaled 5 steals in only 20 minutes for Phoenix. Second-year forward Marresse Speights had a huge game for the 76ers, totaling 32 points and 12 rebounds, and point guard Louis Williams added 27 points for Philadelphia. Rookie Jrue Holiday posted his best showing to date, with 14 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists.
The Bad: Go-to-guys Andre Iguodala and Elton Brand cleared the way for Speights and Williams to explode for Philly, as Iguodala and Brand combined to shoot a putrid 1-for-13 from the field. One-time starter Willie Green also struggled from the floor, shooting just 2-for-8. Goran Dragic missed all seven of his field goal attempts in 20 minutes for Phoenix.
The Ugly: This has to be one of the ugliest box scores I've seen all preseason. Philadelphia scored 41 points in the fourth quarter, took an even 100 field goals attempts for the game to just 87 for Phoenix, out-rebounded the Suns 55 to 43, and shot an even 10% better from the free throw line, but still lost the game. Williams' 27 points came on 9-of-22 shooting, including 1-for-7 from 3-point range, and team had only 15 assists on 41 made field goals.