1971–72 Indiana Pacers season

1971–72 Indiana Pacers season
Head coach	Bobby Leonard
Arena	Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum
Results
Record	47–37 (.560)
Place	Division: 2nd (Eastern)
Playoff finish	ABA Champions (Defeated Nets 4–2)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

The 1971–72 Indiana Pacers season was the fifth season of the Pacers in the American Basketball Association. The Pacers finished second in the Western Division and won their second ABA title. In the division semifinals, the Pacers required seven games to eliminate the Denver Rockets. In the division finals, the Utah Stars were eliminated in seven games. The New York Nets appeared in the ABA Championships for the first time and were defeated by the Pacers in six games.

Offseason

ABA Draft

Main article: 1971 ABA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club Team

Regular season

Schedule

Game	Date	Opponent	Result	Pacers points	Opponents	Record
1
2

Roster

Number	Name	Position	Height	Experience	College
15	John Barnhill	Guard	6–1	9 yrs.	Tennessee State
35	Roger Brown	Guard-Forward	6–5	4 yrs.	Dayton
33	Larry Cannon	Guard	6–4	2 yrs.	Lasalle
22	Wayne Chapman	Guard-Forward	6–6	3 yrs.	Western Kentucky
34	Mel Daniels	Center	6–9	4 yrs.	New Mexico
20	Darnell Hillman	Forward-Center	6–9	1 yr.	San Jose State
11	Bill Keller	Guard	5–10	3 yrs.	Purdue
15	Arvesta Kelly	Guard	6–2	4 yrs.	Lincoln University
14	Freddie Lewis	Guard	6–0	6 yrs.	Arizona State
30	George McGinnis	Forward-Center	6–8	1 yr.	Indiana
10	Rick Mount	Guard	6–3	1 yr.	Purdue
24	Bob Netolicky	Center-Forward	6–9	4 yrs.	Drake
15	Mike Price	Guard	6–3	1 yr.	Illinois
33	Donald Sidle	Center-Forward	6–8	3 yrs.	Oklahoma
12	Marv Winkler	Guard	6–1	1 yr.	Louisiana at Lafayette

Season standings

1971–72 ABA Western Standings

Western Division	W	L	PCT.	GB
Utah Stars	60	24	.714	–
Indiana Pacers	47	37	.560	13
Dallas Chaparrals	42	42	.500	18
Denver Rockets	34	50	.405	26
Memphis Pros	26	58	.310	34

Player stats

Note: GP= Games played; MIN= Minutes; REB= Rebounds; AST= Assists; PTS = Points; AVG = Average

Player	GP	MIN	REB	AST	PTS	AVG
Mel Daniels	79	2971	1297	176	1513
Roger Brown	78	2987	502	306	1444
Bob Netolicky	83	2905	764	83	1250
George McGinnis	73	2179	711	137	1234
Freddie Lewis	77	2714	327	362	1182
Rick Mount	78	2126	155	230	1113
Bill Keller	76	1729	164	264	737
Darnell Hillman	73	1386	478	49	515
Larry Cannon	28	478	33	72	186
Donald Sidle	27	394	95	10	175
John Barnhill	19	194	19	16	68

Playoffs

Western Division Semifinals vs. Denver Rockets

Game	Date	Location	Result	Record	Attendance
1	March 31	Indiana	102–95	1–0	6,103
2	April 1	Indiana	105–106	1–1	6,521
3	April 4	Denver	122–120	2–1	5,304
4	April 6	Denver	96–112	2–2	6,109
5	April 8	Indiana	91–79	3–2	9,428
6	April 9	Denver	99–106	3–3	5,815
7	April 13	Indiana	91–89	4–3	8,643

Pacers won series, 4–3

Western Division Finals vs. Utah Stars

Game	Date	Location	Result	Record	Attendance
1	April 15	Utah	100–108	0–1	9,854
2	April 17	Utah	109–117	0–2	11,780
3	April 19	Indiana	116–111	1–2	7,489
4	April 22	Indiana	118–108	2–2	13,007
5	April 24	Utah	130–139	2–3	12,526
6	April 26	Indiana	105–99	3–3	8,103
7	May 1	Utah	117–113	4–3	12,724

Pacers won series, 4–3

ABA Finals vs. New York Nets

Game	Date	Location	Result	Record	Attendance
1	May 6	Indiana	124–103	1–0	7,483
2	May 9	Indiana	115–117	1–1	10,079
3	May 12	New York	114–108	2–1	15,241
4	May 15	New York	105–110	2–2	15,890
5	May 18	Indiana	100–99	3–2	10,079
6	May 20	New York	108–105	4–2	10,434

Pacers won series, 4–2

Awards, records, and honors

• Roger Brown appeared in the 1972 ABA All-Star Game
• Mel Daniels appeared in the 1972 ABA All-Star Game
• Freddie Lewis appeared in the 1972 ABA All-Star Game

References

• Pacers on Basketball Reference

External links

• RememberTheABA.com 1971–72 regular season and playoff results