featured-image

Game Rewind: Pacers 101, 76ers 98

Game Recap

Victor Oladipo and Bojan Bogdanovic, the Pacers' two leading scorers, could not buy a bucket on Tuesday night in Philadelphia. The duo went a combined 5-for-32 from the field, but their teammates picked them up and both players made key plays down the stretch as Indiana (40-28) picked up a 101-98 victory over the 76ers (36-30).

The win allowed the Blue & Gold to remain in third place in the Eastern Conference standings. More importantly, it clinched the head-to-head tiebreaker for the Pacers, who have won two of three games against Philadelphia this season.

"These guys just continue to fight. If there’s time on the clock they continue to fight," Pacers head coach Nate McMillan said after the win. "Tonight showed growth, playing in a hostile situation having to scrap and not give in to the adversity and play through it and continue to stay together and pulled out a big road win."

The 76ers used an early 8-0 run to open up a 14-9 lead on Tuesday night, but the Pacers quickly answered, reeling off 14 unanswered points to surge back in front. Myles Turner and Cory Joseph were especially effective in the first quarter, with Turner scoring 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting (2-of-2 from 3-point range) and Joseph knocking down all three of his shots and scoring seven points.

Indiana led by as many as 11 points in the opening frame and took a 33-23 lead into the second quarter.

The Sixers used a 14-4 run midway through the second quarter to trim their deficit to two points, but the Pacers held them off for the rest of the half to maintain their advantage. The Blue & Gold took a 57-53 advantage into the break.

Philadelphia eventually tied the game at 71 on Dario Šarić's 3-pointer with 5:31 remaining in the third quarter, but Thaddeus Young took over from there. The Pacers' captain scored seven unanswered points over the next three possessions, the lion's share of what wound up being a 9-0 Indiana run.

"When we are on the road you have to be able to do that," Turner said. "You have to be able to respond. Teams are going to make runs. Basketball is a game of runs. The fact that we responded so well bodes well for us going into the playoffs."

Pacers fans received a scare late in the third quarter, when backup big man Domantas Sabonis fell to the floor in pain, grabbing his left ankle. Sabonis had to be helped to the locker room — where he was diagnosed with a sprained left ankle — and did not return.

Nonetheless, the Pacers took an 83-79 lead into the fourth quarter and led by as many as seven in the early minutes of the final frame.

The Sixers got a break when Turner picked up his fifth foul with 5:45 remaining and was replaced by Al Jefferson (only playing due to the injury to Sabonis). Philadelphia reeled off four straight points to make it a three-point game before McMillan made the decision to put the smaller Trevor Booker — waived by Philadelphia just two weeks ago — in for Jefferson.

Booker converted a putback basket on his first offensive possession, then played tough defense on Philadelphia's All-Star center Joel Embiid on the other end to force a miss. On the next Pacers possession, Oladipo buried a 3-pointer to put Indiana in front, 97-89.

Philly made one last run in the final two minutes, using a J.J. Redick 3-pointer and Embiid layup to make it a 99-96 game with 46 seconds to play. After Oladipo was denied at the rim, the Sixers broke the other way and Redick had an open look to tie the game, but missed long.

Turner corralled the rebound and knocked down both free throws with 21.5 seconds remaining to seemingly seal the game.

But Embiid got a dunk on the other end and then Oladipo was whistled for an offensive foul for hooking his arm around Ben Simmons with 7.6 seconds remaining. Out of a timeout, Embiid had a look to tie the game, but missed his shot and Šarić and Oladipo grabbed the rebound simultaneously, resulting in a jump ball with three seconds to play.

Oladipo won the tip to Bogdanovic on the baseline, who threw the ball off of Simmons to put the finishing touches on the victory.

Turner led Indiana with 25 points on 9-of-12 shooting to go along with six rebounds. Young was also impressive, going 7-for-11 from the field while recording a double-double with 19 points and 10 boards.

Joseph added 13 points, five rebounds, and five assists, while Oladipo (11 points), Lance Stephenson (11 points), and Darren Collison (10 points) all also finished in double figures.

"Scoring can come from anywhere," Booker said. "That's what makes us special. Any given night scoring can come from a different person and that makes it hard for teams to game plan against us."

Embiid led all scorers with 29 points to go along with 12 rebounds, four assists, and three blocks, but he also committed eight turnovers. Šarić added 18 points, while Redick scored 16.

Simmons recorded a triple-double in the loss, finishing with 10 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists.

After picking up two impressive victories in Boston and Philadelphia, Indiana will return to Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Thursday to host the East-leading Toronto Raptors at 7:00 PM ET.

Inside the Numbers

Turner's 25 points matched his season high, set on Nov. 19 in Miami.

Young recorded his sixth double-double of the season and his first since Feb. 11.

With Turner and Young leading the way, Indiana outscored Philadelphia 50-38 in the paint.

Oladipo's 11 points were a new season low. Though he entered Tuesday's contest averaging 23.8 points per game, the Pacers' All-Star guard has scored 14 points or less in three of his last five games and 17 or less in four of his last five contests.

Bogdanovic went 1-for-11 from the field and 0-for-5 from 3-point range and finished with just two points, snapping a 16-game streak of scoring in double figures, the longest such streak of his career.

Simmons recorded his seventh triple-double of the season on Tuesday, tying Magic Johnson for the second-most triple-doubles by a rookie in NBA history. Oscar Robertson holds the record with 26 in the 1960-61 season.

You Can Quote Me On That

"We have been talking about that since returning from the break. They are in the playoff race and we are, too. We knew that this game was going to be physical like this, last game against Boston, the game Thursday against Toronto. It's just that time of the season. I just like the fact that we were able to show growth and play through games like this." -McMillan on the playoff implications of Tuesday's game

"It's always fun playing against Jo because he's so versatile and he does a lot of great things. I hope he's listening, he needs to stop flopping, it's annoying, man. Other than that I've enjoyed playing with him since I've been in the league." -Turner on matching up with Embiid

"Every win definitely counts. It's crunch time right now. We definitely earned us a win tonight." -Booker

"I do give him credit, he's a young talent and any time you can find a big that can be that committed as a roller and a rebounder and have the ability to make shots at the percent that he does, he's pretty special." -76ers head coach Brett Brown on Turner

"It was up there. I think they're a very competitive team, obviously a playoff team. Those types of teams we need to get wins against. At the same time we're learning from playing against those teams so I think it's great for us." -Simmons on the intensity of Tuesday's game

Stat of the Night

Tuesday's Pacers win snapped a 13-game winning streak for the Sixers at the Wells Fargo Center. Prior to Tuesday, Philadelphia had not lost at their home arena since a 114-109 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Dec. 21.

Noteworthy

  • With two steals in the first half, Oladipo extended his franchise-record streak of most consecutive games with a steal to 51. That ties him with Allen Iverson for the 10th-longest streak in NBA history.
  • Including Tuesday's victory, Indiana has now won 14 of its last 17 games against the Sixers.
  • Embiid picked up a technical foul in the third quarter for shoving Stephenson in the back.

Up Next

The Pacers return to Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Thursday, March 15 to host DeMar DeRozan and the East-leading Toronto Raptors at 7:00 PM ET. Tickets start at just $9! Find Tickets »