Pacers finish off Wizards to earn a win
The Pacers snapped their three-game losing streak on Sunday evening at the Fieldhouse. They will be right back in action on Monday night, hosting the Pelicans.
After losing five of their prior six games, the Pacers had to feel like Nuke LaLoosh on Sunday night following their 115-103 win over the Wizards.
Winning is definitely better than losing. The Pacers even covered the 11.5 point spread. That’s the bottom line even if it wasn’t as easy as the final score may appear against a Wizards team that is now 2-13.
Still, the Pacers expressed some relief and happiness as the final buzzer sounded. Benn Mathuring hugged Myles Turner and then Turner hugged Jarace Walker. Pascal Siakam grabbed Tyrese Haliburton who was expressing more relief than joy and shared some veteran knowledge about working through his tough stretch, as Siakam touched on without details after the game.
So, yeah. Just a big “WHEW!” after this one at home with another game on Monday against the Pelicans.
The game did not go as planned, for sure, but that’s why they play 48 minutes. No plan had Moses Brown scoring 11 first quarter points including the first 8 points by the Pacers, but that’s what happened. A couple of early fouls on Myles Turner three minutes into the game, before the Pacers were able to score, had Carlisle call Brown’s number.
With the Wizards length, Brown was a better option than the 6’7 Enrique Freeman or Obi Toppin and the 7’2 Brown made a quick impact. Quick as in his ability to move and get the ball up to the rim. There will be no instructional videos on his shooting form, but his impact around the rim was a perfect fit for what the Pacers need in a reserve big. Brown finished the game with 15 points and 4 rebounds in under 13 minutes of court time.
While the Pacers didn’t finish the first half well, giving up five late points, the did avoid the killer scoring runs that opponents have hit them with of late, and also threw a couple of their own at the Wiz. A three-minute 12-0 run in the third quarter put the Pacers in control with the Wiz chasing the rest of the way.
That relieved look Haliburton had was in part due to his role in the third quarter when he made four threes, scored 14 points and dished out 3 assists. The comfort of home has served Haliburton well this season and he was able to tap into his game when the Pacers needed it most. Even earlier in the game, he wasn’t shooting well but did create some midrange shots that were more assertive that we’ve seen lately. Let’s hope he can continue to take strides in the positive direction.
Pascal Siakam and Bennedict Mathurin continue to be as reliable as anyone on the Pacers. Siakam had 22 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds including an open three-pointer on a pass from Walker that put the Pacers up 10 points with under a minute to go.
Mathurin finished with 16 points, 4 assists and 6 rebounds in 39 minutes. No worries about Mathurin playing heavy minutes on a back-to-back since he seems ready to go all day, every day at this point. After Siakam’s dagger three, Mathurin put the icing on the win with a nice little windmill dunk through a contest at the rim that seemed to come out of nowhere.
Speaking of Jarace Walker, after a meh first half, Carlisle had Walker on the floor for the whole fourth quarter as the young fella earned his minutes with 3 steals, 4 assists and 5 rebounds in the deciding quarter, doing his part to truly make it ‘winning time’ for the Pacers.
Pelicans in for back-to-back
The Pacers have to get right back at it on Monday night when they host the Pelicans who last played on Friday night. The Pels won the first meeting in New Orleans which pushed their record to 3-3. Since then they are 1-10 while dealing with a rash of injuries. Tonight the visitors are expected to be without Zion Williamson, Dejounte Murray, Herb Jones, CJ McCollum and Jose Alvarado.
While it is a back-to-back, the Pacers should be itching to get back on the court and build on the winning vibes they felt as the final buzzer sounded. They were definitely better in the win over Washington, but just good enough and far from great. The Pacers in a position where they have to stay on the grind to get to where they want to be as a team so they need to take advantage of the opportunity to catch the depleted Pels at home to keep working in the right direction.
Pacers vs. Pelicans
Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
When: Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, 7:00 p.m. ET
TV: FanDuel Sports Network
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan
Odds: Pacers -7
Projected Starters
Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton, Quenton Jackson, Bennedict Mathurin, Pascal Siakam, Myles Turner
Pelicans: Elfrid Payton, Davonte Green, Brandon Ingram, Trey Murphy III, Daniel Theis
Injuries
Pacers: Ben Sheppard (oblique) - out, Aaron Nesmith (ankle) - out, James Wiseman (Achilles) - out, Isaiah Jackson (Achilles) - out, Andrew Nembhard (knee) - out
Pelicans: CJ McCollum (hip) - questionable, Yves Missi (shoulder) - questionable, Dejounte Murray (hand) - doubtful, Jose Alvarado (hamstring) - out, Herbert Jones (shoulder) - out, Zion Williamson (hamstring) - out