Maturity meets audacity tonight, and level-headedness faces emotion. The Jazz and Pacers have virtually identical records, but their routes to that destination are as different as their demeanors.
   
The Pacers are mercurial, unbeatable in November, inconsolable now. They started 10-1, then added a 9-2 stretch, and seemed to be coasting. But the slowdown has turned into a free fall, and Indiana has lost 12 of its last 13. Once the Eastern Conference's runaway leader, the Pacers now stand fourth, and are only one-half game from losing homecourt advantage in the playoffs' first round.
   
The Jazz, on the other hand, have arrived at their 37-27 record, heading into tonight's visit to Conseco Fieldhouse (5 p.m., FSN), with a fairly consistent pattern: Beat the bad teams, mostly lose to the good. The Jazz, 9-9 overall since Feb. 1, are 15-19 against the 15 other teams that currently hold playoff positions, 6-11 on the road. They are 22-8 against non-playoff teams.