A tale of two halves: Pacers survive Hawks’ second-half surge on way to 110-100 victory

The Indiana Pacers entered the away locker room at State Farm Arena at halftime with a 15-point lead and momentum that seemed to have put the game away.

But that didn’t stop the Atlanta Hawks from storming back and cutting the lead to as close as 3 points in the second-half.

That second-half resurgence was ultimately not enough, as the Pacers beat the Hawks 110-100.

The Pacers were led by Malcolm Brogdon with 19 points, 8 rebounds and 12 assists. T.J. Warren also played well with 18 points.

Seven Pacers scored in double-figures.

Trae Young led the Hawks with 23 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists, but he was not nearly as effective as he was in their first outing against the Pacers, as he shot 30% from the field.

The first quarter started off as an even matchup, but Indiana took command at the end of the quarter and beginning of the second quarter with the second unit + Domantas Sabonis. The unit of T.J. McConnell, Aaron Holiday, Justin Holiday, Doug McDermott and Sabonis continued their strong play as they went on a 12-2 run when the score was tied at 17-17.

Young did not record his first field goal until 7:30 to go in the second quarter.

The Pacers were able to extend their lead to as much as 17 points in the second quarter, but a 5-0 Hawks run cut the lead to 57-45 with 2:18 remaining. Indiana closed the half off strong and entered the third quarter with a 63-48 lead.

The Hawks did not hit a single three-pointer in the entire first half.

The Hawks tried to switch things up at the beginning of the second half by coming out in a 2-3 zone, but Warren quickly ended that by hitting a three-pointer on the opening possession.

After Warren’s three-pointer, the third quarter belonged to the Hawks.

A 15-6 Atlanta run to follow Warren’s three-pointer cut Indiana’s lead to 9 points. Later in the quarter, a Cam Reddish three-pointer capped a 9-0 run to cut Indiana’s lead to 81-76 with 2:45 remaining.

An Allen Crabbe three-pointer with seconds remaining cut the Pacers’ lead to 86-83 entering the fourth quarter, the closest the game would be for the rest of the way.

The Pacers quickly took control in the fourth quarter when they opened with a 11-4 run to extend their lead to 10 points.

The Hawks were not able to cut the lead under 5 points the rest of the way.

Jabari Parker and De’Andre Hunter scored 20 and 21 points for the Hawks respectively.

McDermott and Aaron Holiday played well off the bench for the Pacers with 16 and 13 points respectively.

The win extends the Pacers to 17-9 on the season and good for fifth in the Eastern Conference. The loss drops the Hawks to a disappointing 6-20 on the season.

The Pacers are back in action on Sunday as they take on the Charlotte Hornets at Bankers Life Fieldhouse at 5 p.m.