Pacers provide bright spot for hoops in Indy by beating Bulls for first road win
As we mentioned on Friday, Central Indiana had a sports weekend for the ages dialed up which left the Pacers game on Friday in Chicago a ways off the radar. But that’s why they play the actual games.
Turns out from a hoops perspective, the Pacers were a rare bright spot for the local teams as they beat the Bulls, 120-105 to earn their first road win of the season. And the Pacers delivered the win in impressive fashion, taking the lead for good on a three-pointer by Bennedict Mathurin as part of a 16-4 run in the middle of the second quarter.
Andrew Nembhard jump started a 13-0 run to start the third quarter which allowed the Pacers to survive a 20-4 run by the Bulls before cruising to the win through the fourth quarter. Nembhard had 15 points and 7 assists for the game but also had a handful of defensive steals and hustle plays which set the right disposition for the rest of the rotation.
Mathurin finished with 29 points in an efficient effort, requiring just 16 shots, thanks to a 6 of 11 effort from behind the arc. Pascal Siakam continued his All-Star level play with 36 points and 10 rebounds with 5 3-balls of his own.
In the ‘where do they find these guys’ category, Ethan Thompson played his second NBA game and was ready to deliver, making three treys and finishing with 11 points, 3 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks and a steal in 34 minutes off the bench for a +25 showing while on the court. Garrison Mathews was a surprise starter and ended up playing 10 minutes while Jarace Walker played just 9 minutes off the bench.
Your guess is as good as mine for who will start against the Kings on Monday, but hopefully Walker can get in the mix for more minutes since you’d assume his long-term impact for the Pacers (even if for a trade) is more important than Mathews and Thompson. But it remains impressive to see these players coming out of nowhere to take advantage of their NBA chance. That should also serve as motivation for Walker.
While the IU football team was the brightest shining light around town after their epic win over Ohio State at Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday night, the Pacers were next in line after Purdue couldn’t make a shot to save their life and ended up getting beat soundly by Iowa State with Tyrese Haliburton and fiancé Jade enjoying the action courtside. IU basketball was also unable to keep up with Louisville in their game at the Fieldhouse.
Even worse, Butler took a rough home loss at Hinkle to Boise State on Saturday afternoon. Only Jeff Teague’s Pike squad repped the area with their solid win over Louisville Male to take at least one of the border war games.
As it turns out, even the good basketball wins were muted by the highlight of IU football beating Ohio State to win a Big Ten title, become the No. 1 team in the nation and secure a College Football Playoff quarterfinal game in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1. Congrats to the Hoosiers for making it happen.
Now the Pacers return home to face the Sacramento Kings who have struggled this season, but boast veteran scorers who can rise up on any given night. In fact, Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan have had great moments in their past games at the Fieldhouse at the Pacers expense, mostly when both were with the Bulls. But now the Kings have been a bit of a jumbled mess with Russell Westbrook also in the mix and ol’ friend, Domas Sabonis out with a knee injury.
The Pacers schedule eases up while the Emirates NBA Cup moves to bracket play on Tuesday and Wednesday. After playing the Kings, the Pacers will be off until Friday when they visit the Sixers for the first of their add-on games. Then the Pacers host the Wizards on Sunday (Dec. 14) for the second add-on game. So the Pacers will have three full off days before playing the Sixers on Friday and then another three full off days at home after playing the Wiz.
Pacers vs. Kings
Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
When: Monday, December 7, 2025 - 7:00 p.m. ET
TV: FanDuel Sports Network
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan
Odds: Pacers -3.5
Projected Starters
Pacers: Andrew Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, Jarace Walker, Pascal Siakam, Jay Huff
Kings: Russell Westbrook, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Keegan Murray, Maxime Raynaud
Injuries
Pacers: Ben Sheppard (calf) - out, Aaron Nesmith (knee) - out, Quenton Jackson (hammy) - out, Obi Toppin (hammy) - out, Kam Jones (back) - out, Tyrese Haliburton (Achilles) - out
Kings: Domantas Sabonis (knee) - out, Dennis Schroder (hip) - out