by Jordan Morey
The Indiana Pacers didn’t mess around on April Fools’ Day.
Kicking off a pivotal week of games, the Pacers (43-33) trailed for just 2 minutes and 10 seconds on Monday in a 133-111 blowout win over the Brooklyn Nets (29-47) at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Indiana pounced early, leading by double digits in the first quarter before ballooning the lead to 28 at halftime. In the final 24 minutes, the Blue and Gold coasted to their second straight win.
With the win, the Pacers are now a game above the Miami Heat (41-33) for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. The top six teams in the East will automatically make the playoffs, while those finishing seven through 10 will make the Play-In Tournament.
Pacers coaches and players alike reached historical milestones on Monday.
By beating Brooklyn, Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle recorded his 939th career win, passing the legendary Red Auerbach for 12th place on the NBA’s all-time wins list. In 1984, Auerbach was president of the Boston Celtics when they drafted Carlisle with the 70th overall pick.
“Without Red, none of this probably happens,” Carlisle said. “It’s really hard to say how it would all have gone. That’s an amazing man, an amazing person in the history of the game.”
On the floor, Tyrese Haliburton now has 695 assists on the season after recording 13 against the Nets, passing Don Buse (685 assists in 1976-77) for second place in the franchise’s single-season record book. Mark Jackson holds the franchise record with 713 assists in 1997-98.
With the win, the Pacers secured their season series against the Nets for the first time since the 2019-20 season. Indiana and Brooklyn will meet again on Wednesday but at Barclays Center.
Six players recorded double-digit scoring for the Pacers, who finished at 51.5 percent shooting (41.9 percent from 3-point range) as a team.
Haliburton led the Blue & Gold with 27 points (9-for-15 shooting), 13 assists, and four rebounds in 27 minutes. After Haliburton, Jalen Smith logged 17 points and 10 rebounds, Pascal Siakam had 15 points and six boards, Obi Toppin scored 14 points, and Aaron Nesmith scored 11 points.
Cam Thomas topped the Nets with 22 points, Trendon Watford scored 21, and Mikal Bridges scored 19. Indiana limited the Nets to 47.7 percent shooting.
In the first half, the Pacers led 75-47 by shooting 57.7 percent from the field and holding the visitors to 38.3 percent.
Haliburton was sensational in the opening half, scoring 21 points on 7-for-12 shooting to go with seven assists and five rebounds. Siakam was also strong, scoring 13 points in the first half, and Smith had 10 off the bench for the Blue and Gold.
FIRST QUARTER
In the first quarter, the Pacers put on a dominant offensive display, shooting 66.7 percent to lead 43-27 at the end of the frame. Haliburton came out on fire, scoring 14 points on 5-for-7 (3-for-4 3-point) while recording five assists and three rebounds in the period.
Indiana went up by double-digits three minutes after the tip, using a 19-5 run — highlighted by a 13-0 spree in which Haliburton hit back-to-back 3-pointers – to lead 21-9 with 7:23 on the clock.
The Pacers kept their foot on the gas from there, as Haliburton’s third 3-pointer of the night and a trio of baskets by Siakam from close range extended the lead to 30-13 with just under five minutes remaining in the first quarter.
While the Nets got some offense rolling in the final minutes of the opening frame, the Pacers essentially went basket-for-basket as they took a 16-point lead into the second quarter.
SECOND QUARTER
Indiana’s bench kept the Nets at bay early in the second quarter, building the lead to as many as 22 points, before the starters came back in and used a 9-0 run to extend the lead to 69-40 with 4:03 left in the half.
Haliburton added three more points off free throws, Siakam hit a mid-range jumper, and Myles Turner hit a free throw with his left hand after injuring his right finger in the last 2:29 as the Pacers’ lead ballooned to 28 points by the break.
“I just felt like we were playing some good ball,” Haliburton said. “The ball was moving, it was hot. We understand that this is a team who has multiple elite defenders one-on-one. We just thought the best way to kind of attack them is random movement, get the ball moving, and not let the ball stick. …When the ball’s moving like that, we’re really hard to defend against anybody.”
THIRD QUARTER
Out of intermission, seven straight points by Smith and a 3-pointer by Haliburton kept the Pacers ahead 87-62 with six minutes on the clock.
The game got contentious midway through the third period, as Smith was ejected with a double technical after he confronted Nets guard Dennis Schroder after a hard offensive foul. Schroder was also issued a technical on the play.
Indiana responded with another flurry after the stoppage. From 5:15 to 1:20 in the third quarter, the Pacers went on an 18-4 run, during which Nesmith scored seven points, Haliburton threw down a thunderous breakaway dunk, and rookie Ben Sheppard converted an and-one to make it 106-70.
Heading into the final 12 minutes of action, the Pacers led 108-77.
FOURTH QUARTER
The Pacers’ bench played the entirety of the fourth quarter. Of note, with 3:38 left in the game, Pacers rookie Isaiah Wong scored his first official NBA basket on a 16-foot jumper.
The Pacers won the rebounding margin 47-42 and outscored the Nets 70-52 in the paint/. Indiana dished out 35 assists as a team and finished with nine turnovers to the Nets’ 15 giveaways.
Indiana will conclude its regular season series with the Nets on Wednesday in Brooklyn before hosting the Western Conference first-place Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday.
Inside the Numbers
Tyrese Haliburton has recorded 43 double-doubles and Jalen Smith now has five for the season.
Indiana’s bench outscored the Brooklyn reserves 64-51.
The Pacers scored 43 points in the first quarter, which was one point short of tying the most for the season in the period (44 points on Nov. 6 against San Antonio).
In the first half, the Pacers scored 19 fastbreak points while the Nets had none.
The Pacers are 8-3 with two days rest and the Nets are 4-9 on the second leg of back-to-backs this season.
Myles Turner recorded five blocks against the Nets despite his injury-shortened game. He has recorded at least five blocks in five games this season.
Pacers guard T.J. McConnell has scored in double figures in 10 straight games, the longest double-digit streak of his career. He scored 10 points on Monday.
The Nets shot 19-for-28 from the free throw line and the Pacers went 14-for-17.
You Can Quote Me on That
“There were obviously a lot of good things in this game, but we have a real challenge on Wednesday. We’ll have to be ready. They’ll be ready. There were some emotions flying around and all that kind of stuff. It will be a very good test.” – Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle on Wednesday’s game against the Nets
“They played last night, and I thought we took advantage of that early. We pushed it, we got stops, the ball moved. … When we’re playing that fast and random, we can be tough to play against.” – Carlisle on the win
“I’m really grateful to Red for drafting me in the third round almost 40 years ago. When you get drafted into the NBA, you get a shot. I was very fortunate to be in the right place at the right time, and my playing career led to a coaching opportunity. The Celtics lineage has a lot to do with it.” – Carlisle on passing Red Auerbach on the all-time head coaching wins list
“He (was) a man of great wisdom, one of the great competitors in the history of the sport. … This is a great opportunity to remind people of the standards he set. No one should ever forget Red Auerbach.” – Carlisle on Auerbach
“I just thought we did a good job of finishing possessions. Myles did a great job of protecting the rim and kind of anchoring us defensively. We gave up a lot of rejects in the pick-and-roll and stuff and I thought Myles did a good job of kind of cleaning that up and finishing possessions with rebounds and getting quick outlets and allowing us to run.” – Tyrese Haliburton on the defense in the first half
“It’s very cool to be a part of something special. I think that the contributions that coach has made to the game will always be remembered. I think that when he’s done there’s going to be a lot more wins than what he’s at now. Just glad that I get to be a part of it and be with a brilliant basketball mind like that on a daily basis and get to pick his brain, ask questions, do all those things. That’s something I don’t take for granted being here in the NBA, being on the Pacers. I’m really thankful for him and happy for him, but hopefully I’m a part of many more (wins) moving forward.” –Haliburton on Carlisle passing Red Auerbach on the all-time wins list
“It’s pretty cool. I want to leave a lasting impact on this game and this organization specifically. I hope when I retire I have the record for one to 15 or something like that. That would be pretty cool. Just trying to leave my mark. All of that stuff doesn’t happen without coach trusting me with the ball in my hands and my teammates making shots. That’s a big part of it.” – Haliburton on nearing the franchise single-season assists record
“I’m happy for him. It’s a special moment. I think everybody remembers their first points, so really cool to see. He’s just been great at just being a sponge asking me questions, the guys that are playing in front of him asking (them) questions. And he’s doing a good job of just paying his dues and attacking every game the right way in the G League as well. Really happy for him. Hopefully there’s many more to come for him. Got a playoff game tomorrow, know he and the guys will take care of business there.” – Haliburton on Isaiah Wong making his NBA debut and scoring his first career points
“I felt like today was a big step in the right direction as a team. There’s still a lot of things we can clean up, but I feel like we’re definitely heading on the right rack. I feel like the coaches are doing a great job of helping us lock in on everything we need to do defensively and offensively. We know that defensively we’ve got to pick things up because those are going to win us a lot more games.” – Obi Toppin on the win
“We just can’t get satisfied. We just have to work on our brand of basketball. … We want to get better as a team, work on good habits, because everyone is going to have a chance to play in these playoffs coming up. We just want to play the right way.” – Toppin on looking ahead
“It’s amazing. Obviously, congrats to coach. It’s well-deserved. He’s an amazing coach, obviously. A player’s coach. I’m blessed to play under him and be a part of history. There’s going to be a lot more wins under his belt, but I’m glad I’m here today.” – Toppin on Carlisle passing Auerbach
“I think the thing we do well is moving the ball, continuing to attack the mismatches without kind of like stopping our offense. That’s going to be dangerous.” – Pascal Siakam on the Pacers’ offense
“These games left are important. We know what the standards are. At the end of the day, every game matters. There’s no way to take a different approach to these games. We have to come in ready. Every possession matters at this point.” – Siakam on the win and looking ahead
Stat of the Night
The Pacers outshot the Nets 58.8 percent to 38.3 percent in the first half to build a 28-point lead by the intermission.
Noteworthy
- Myles Turner did not return to the game after injuring his finger in the second quarter. Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said postgame that Turner’s status for Wednesday is unknown.
- Rookie Isaiah Wong made his official NBA debut on Monday. He played in the In-Season Tournament Championship game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Dec. 9, but those results didn’t count towards the season statistics.
Up Next
The Pacers and Nets will meet again in Brooklyn on Wednesday, April 3 at 7:30 PM ET.
Tickets
The Pacers return to Gainbridge Fieldhouse to host Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday, April 5 at 7:00 PM ET.
Originally posted on pacers.com