The Pacers scored their best win in weeks in Houston on Tuesday night. With Bruce Brown sidelined and the team slumping, Rick Carlisle debuted a new starting lineup (new for this season at least) consisting of Tyrese, Nembhard, Nesmith, Smith, and Turner. The team found its footing after some bizarre substitutions in the first half and seemingly everyone managed to contribute.

As you can see from the image above, Tyrese Haliburton was the driving force in the win. Having put the NBA on notice of his superstardom, Tyrese now has to contend with the league's best defenders – often two at a time – every single night. While the Rockets did not choose to double him as much as other teams of late, they did try to disrupt his flow with gamesmanship.

Unfortunately for Brooks and the Rockets, sometimes you should let sleeping dogs lie. Haliburton proceeded to wipe the floor with Brooks, forcing him to call it a night early with an "oblique strain."

Haliburton's late three with the game tied at 117 was yet another example of his superstar prowess. When you need someone to close out a game, Haliburton is as good as anyone in the NBA.

Myles Turner also played a great game. Though he only finished with two official blocks, he altered so many shots at the rim it felt like significantly more. In fact, all three of the Pacers' centers did a good job protecting the rim. Isaiah Jackson finished with three swats, while Jalen Smith had two of his own. When it comes to contesting attempts at the rim, the Pacers have been fairly successful.

The problem is the volume. Opponents have had far too easy of a time getting shots in front of the basket, an issue that continued in Houston.

While individual defense is partly to blame, I believe rebounding is exacerbating the problem. The Pacers did a good job overall defensively against the Rockets but simply allowed too many putbacks and second chances.

That's an issue that will be on full display tonight against the Bulls with Andre Drummond starting at center for an injured Nikola Vucevic. Drummond delivered a vintage performance in the Bulls victory on Tuesday against the Hawks, tallying 24 points and 25 rebounds. He was a beast on the o-boards, gobbling up 25% of his team's missed field goals while he was on the court.

Despite being down Zach LaVine, Torrey Craig, and now Nikola Vucevic, Chicago are on a heater. They've won five of seven over the last two weeks and are top-8 in point differential over that stretch. DeMar DeRozan continues to be one of the most reliable wing scorers in the league. Against the Hawks he poured in 25 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter and eight in the final 2:50.

The Pacers will need to be on point to pull out another road win. Something that may be especially tough if Tyrese Haliburton doesn't play.

Injuries

How to Watch

Tipoff is at 8:00 PM ET.

TV: Bally Sports Indiana, NBA League Pass

Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan

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