The Pacers are back stateside and are set to take on the Detroit Pistons. The teams last faced off shortly before the Pacers left for Paris, resulting in a 111-100 win for the visiting Blue & Gold.

It was an offensive struggle but the Pacers newfound defensive identity gave them the upper hand.

In particular, Andrew Nembhard's defense on Cade Cunningham stood out. He forced Detroit's star into a highly inefficient 7/21 from the floor.

That full court, tough nosed defense led to tensions boiling over in the final minute of the game. It was a textbook NBA fight, with nobody even getting close to doing anything serious. But Isaiah Stewart did make fun of Myles Turner for playing with Legos, so we've been blessed with plenty of Lego-based trash talk in the lead up to this game.

Leave it to C. Coop to get off the best joke of the bunch.

Injuries

Unfortunately, we may not get to witness a repeat of Nembhard's defensive excellence as he's on the injury report with a bad back. Benn Mathurin is also questionable with an illness.

Jarace Walker, get ready to show Rick why he's a fool for taking away your minutes.

How to Watch

Tipoff is at 7:00 PM ET.

TV: FanDuel Sports Network, NBA League Pass

Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan

See ya in the comments!

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