The Indiana Pacers let one slip away in Game 1 but will surely play with more physicality and aggression in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Miami Heat Friday night at 8:30 pm ET.
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Via ESPN:
Pacers center Roy Hibbert criticized Shane Battier on Twitter on Thursday for a play in Game 1 where Battier kneed him in the midsection on a drive to the basket. Battier was called for an offensive foul. Hibbert said the blow was intentional and was aimed at getting him to not be as aggressive in defending the rim.
"I've never seen [Battier] do that before. I didn't think that was cool of him. ... I personally thought it wasn't a regular shooting motion for a layup, his knee was out to begin with," Hibbert said after the Pacers' shootaround Friday. "It was him saying, 'I'll hit you first now, and maybe you won't be there later on,' and I'm saying, I'm going to be there."
Both coaches downplayed the events of the game, which included several borderline plays, including Heat guard Norris Cole being called for a foul for hitting the Pacers' David West between the legs. Battier did not speak to the media Friday.
Asked about Hibbert's take on Battier, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said: "The game will be decided between the four lines tonight. Everything else is just talk."
"The reason I said something was because I saw somebody write it was an inadvertent knee and that's bull----," Hibbert said. "He knew what he was doing, man. That's fine if he wants to do that, but I'll still be there to protect the rim. ... We need everybody on our team to compete. We can't have anybody thrown out of the game or suspended for a game. To be honest, I thought about [retaliating], but I need to be in the game to make an impact. In my younger days I probably would've [retaliated]."
