The Indiana Pacers played 18 games before they suffered their second defeat of the regular season, but in a matter of six days they've managed to lose two of three games in the playoffs against the Atlanta Hawks.

As it was in the first two games of the series, Game 3 was decided in the third quarter. The Hawks outscored the Pacers 28-20 in the period and dropped 59 overall after halftime en route to a 98-85 win at Philips Arena on Thursday night.

After taking two steps forward in the second half of Game 2 on Tuesday night, the Pacers have taken four steps backward. It continues an alarming trend for a team that hasn't been able to get their act together since the All-Star break.

Since March 4, the Pacers have managed the following: four losses to winning teams, four wins over losing teams, three losses in four games, huge win over the Miami Heat, six losses in eight games, big win over the Oklahoma City Thunder and a season-ending victory over the Orlando Magic.

On March 2, they were 46-13. Since then (playoffs included) they are 11-15.

The Pacers were by no means rolling when the playoffs began, but even a pedestrian effort was supposed to get them past the Hawks with relative ease. What Indiana forgot was that Atlanta would be playing with nothing to lose, smelling blood in the water.

Indiana's defense was troubling through the first six quarters of the series, but in Game 3 the offense (predictably) was their downfall. The Hawks shot 38.4% from the floor and a very average 12-for-34 from three, but the Pacers couldn't scratch together enough offense to take advantage of Atlanta's shooting woes.

The Pacers will gladly take those shooting percentages, especially on a night when they commit 13 turnovers (just eight after the first quarter) and have a +10 rebounding differential.

Atlanta was the aggressor from the opening tip, causing the Pacers to backpedal on defense and foul often. The defense wasn't awful by any means, but the Hawks missed a ton of easy looks. They continue to somehow get several wide open threes, even though everyone knows they will attempt a ton of them.

The Hawks were 30-for-37 from the foul line, the difference in a game that saw both teams shoot horribly. The Pacers were 16-for-21 from the charity stripe.

DeMarre Carroll and Kyle Korver led the way for Atlanta. They were a combined 12-for-17 with 38 points and 10 rebounds. Jeff Teague had 22 points and 10 assists, but was 7-for-20 from the field. Paul Millsap shot 3-for-11, but still contributed 14 points thanks to eight trips to the line.

'Small' Ball

Frank Vogel stuck with the usual suspects through the first 11 quarters before finally going small with 9:24 left in the fourth quarter. He played David West and Luis Scola together in the frontcourt, conceding a rim protector (Roy Hibbert or Ian Mahinmi) against a team that has taken approximately 41% of their shots from behind the three-point line in the series.

The lineup worked for a bit, as the Pacers reduced what was once a 12-point deficit to just four on a few occasions, but the Hawks made timely shots, and Indiana missed some, to put the game away.

It's safe to say that Game 4 is a must-win for Indiana, Vogel must make significant adjustments to how the Pacers rotate and defend the perimeter. If that means giving Mahinmi and Scola time that would go to Hibbert, so be it.

Teague's Prayer

Even if the Pacers are able to right the ship and win this series, Teague's Jordanesque shrug following a made three with 2:49 left to give the Hawks an 87-78 lead will be remembered for years.

Indiana was putting the finishing touches on a great defensive possession when Teague rose for an off-balance three in the face of an outstretched Scola. He made the shot without a clear look at the basket, a high degree of difficulty on a night when so many easy ones were missed.

If Teague doesn't make the shot, the Pacers are in business with the ball down just six.

Fans will point to an arcane NBA rule that doesn't allow an out of bounds violation to be reviewed outside of two minutes remaining as a turning point here. The officiating crew reviewed the Teague shot during a stoppage in play to make sure he was behind the three-point line. He was, but replays also showed that he stepped out of bounds prior to rising up.

The rulebook states that “video review will take place ONLY in the last two minutes of the fourth period and all overtime periods” and that “Review must take place prior to the subsequent in-bounding of the ball.”

Thus, even if the officiating crew determined that Teague had stepped out of bounds, they couldn’t have disallowed the made three because of the game situation.

Regardless of how strange that sounds, the Pacers made their bed prior to Teague's three.

Turner's Minutes

Evan Turner has seen his playing time decrease incrementally. After logging 18 minutes in Game 1, he played 11 in Game 2 and just eight on Thursday night.

Vogel has been criticized for his rigidity, but keeping Turner glued to the bench has been a smart decision. Turner is a -20 against the Hawks, scoring 15 points on 6-for-11 shooting. His individual numbers haven't been horrible, but the offense is even more ineffective when he's on the floor. He's been on the roster for more than two months, but often times he seems to be on a completely different page than everyone else.