Pacers make last run to beat Rockets, now head to Atlanta to begin road-heavy stretch of schedule

Tyrese Haliburton was magnificent and Myles Turner closed strong to lead the Pacers over the Rockets. Now focus shifts to taking those good vibes on the road while the Fieldhouse is busy.

The Pacers beat the Rockets 115-102 on Tuesday to secure their 35 win and move their record to 10 games above .500 for the season. While every win from here on out in the regular season is important for postseason positioning, this win over the Rockets was also highly entertaining for 48 minutes.

Check that, the game was entertaining for 46 minutes and 23 seconds, up until Myles Turner hit a three pointer to push the Pacers lead to 14 and officially kill the Rockets’ will which was no easy task. The dagger three forced a Houston timeout as both teams cleared the bench for the remainder of the game.

In a game of runs, the Pacers had the last one to put away the win, but the fluctuations throughout the second half made the game quite a fun watch. With just under four minutes remaining in the third quarter, the Pacers went up by 17 points and appeared on their way to sealing up a win, but the Rockets aren’t built to roll over.

Houston spent the rest of the third quarter and first few minutes of the fourth quarter battling back before eventually taking a one point lead with just under nine minutes to play in the game. From there, the Pacers held the Rockets scoreless for five minutes while Turner and Tyrese Haliburton took turns making big plays to fuel the deciding run that was much appreciated until Turner’s ‘send the Fieldhouse faithful home happy’ 3-ball.

While Turner was great late, he needed some help from backup Thomas Bryant to keep the Pacers going early. Bryant was pressed into action three minutes into the game after Turner committed two quick fouls. No problem, Bryant finished the quarter making a pair of threes and scoring 10 points to keep the Pacers even with the Rockets.

Alperen Sengun was crafty early but Turner eventually realized he could just hold his ground and use his length to slow down the Houston big which he did throughout the second half, finishing the game with 5 blocks including getting credit for one during a mad scramble play around the rim where he seemed to block three or four shots, but certainly altered the Houston shots before the ball finally went out of bounds to the Pacers. This play shifted the momentum back to the Pacers for the deciding fourth quarter run. Again…good times at the Fieldhouse.

No doubt I’ve gone on too far about the 48ish minute battle without highlighting the elite performance from Tyrese Haliburton. His 28 points, 15 assists and just two turnovers continue to bolster his unfathomable point guard numbers of late. Most impressive, was this performance highlighted how Haliburton has overcome playing against teams that can put a long, athletic defender one him to essentially face guard him. No longer is he deferring to a 4 on 4 situation, the Pacers are getting him free with screens and he is attacking offensively both inside and out.

Cracking that code for Haliburton surely isn’t easy but his confidence couldn’t be higher as his play lifts the whole team by creating open opportunities all over the floor. The Pacers also moved to 20-2 in games when Haliburton scores 20 points, so while the assist numbers are crazy, remaining that aggressive scoring threat is even more important. This level of play will get tested again, in Atlanta where Dyson Daniels is year another long defender who is playing defense as well as any wing in the league.

The Pacers play the Hawks on Thursday and Saturday, the first two of a rash of roadies on the upcoming schedule. With the Big Ten Women’s and Men’s tournaments at the Fieldhouse this week and next, the Pacers play three road games and then return (on a back-to-back) to play Milwaukee at home next Tuesday. They then play three more road games which including playing the Bucks next Saturday on a back-to-back.

Unless injuries come into play, the battle for the fourth seed in the East will be impacted in a huge way over these next 10 days as the Pacers try to keep winning AND level up the season series with the Bucks. Who knows, maybe falling back to the sixth seed and facing a possibly worn out Knicks team would be a better matchup. But earning the fourth seed and home court advantage in the first round has to remain a primary goal.

Once again, Tyrese Haliburton is on the injury report as questionable with a hip strain. It will be interesting to see how the Pacers manage minutes to handle the upcoming back-to-backs but Haliburton missing this first road game with a non-travel off day on Friday would not be a good way to start. In better news, Bennedict Mathurin has been upgraded to questionable so we may see him back on the floor in Atlanta.

Pacers vs. Hawks

Where: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, GA

When: Thursday, Mar. 6, 2025, 7:30 p.m. ET

TV: FanDuel Sports Network

Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan

Odds: Pacers -3

Projected Starters

Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, Myles Turner

Hawks: Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher, Mouhamed Gueye, Onyeka Okongwu

Injuries

Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton (hip) - questionable, Bennedict Mathurin (wrist) - questionable, Isaiah Jackson (Achilles) - out

Hawks: Trae Young (Achilles) - probable, Kobe Bufkin (shoulder) - out, Jalen Johnson (shoulder) - out, Vit Krejci (back) - out, Larry Nance Jr. (thigh) - out