Tourney Win Recap

The Pacers downed the Cavs 121-116 for another spot in the NBA tournament history books. After being the first team to ever win a Play-In Tournament game, the Pacers are now the first team to win an In-Season Tournament game as well.

Last night's performance was two bounce-backs for the price of one. After struggling mightily against Boston, the team came ready to play against Cleveland – a welcome show of resilience from a group that is still finding its identity. The Pacers jumped on the Cavs on the first half, getting out to a solid double digit lead. The second half – well, third quarter mainly – was a different story. The lead tracker graphic below tells the story of a team, still reeling from one of the worst losses in franchise history, that could have compounded catastrophe with an epic melt-down during the first "big-game" of the season.

Had the Pacers fully collapsed, the excuses would have been plenty. The court was slippery, Tyrese had an off game... But the important thing is the team showed grit and battened down the hatches when it came to winning time.

The fans were pumped for all the shiny new things (tournament, jersey, court) and that energy buoyed the team when it needed it most.

Anecdotally, I believe last night was the record for comments on a game thread.

Team Effort

Carlisle played a tight nine-man rotation last night and just about everyone contributed stats wise.

Myles Turner was the star, dropping 27 points and coming up with one of the plays of the game – an emphatic swat on Mobley with mere seconds left.

Hali, as I mentioned, struggled to find his footing (see what I did there). Regardless of his poor shooting percentages, he did what superstars do on off nights: find other ways to contribute and come through in the clutch. His 13 assists and cold blooded step-back with the game on the line are as encouraging to me as any 50/40/90 performance.

Three Point Shooting

The one stat that determines how well the Pacers pay is their three-point shooting. In the words of Mel Brooks "or you got it or you ain't" and last night the Pacers had it, making 48% on 31 attempts (including this nifty one below).

Charlotte

The Pacers play their first back-to-back of the season, taking on the Charlotte Hornets at home. The Hornets have struggled so far this year, only winning one out of four contests. They possess a middling offense that focuses on attacking inside rather than hoisting an outrageous number of threes. On the other end of the court, their collection of youth has struggled to get stops. Much like the Pacers, they are stout when challenging threes, but concede avenues to the rim far too easily.

Speaking of youth, tonight will be our first glimpse at polarizing draft prospect Brandon Miller. The Alabama product has had a solid start to his career, averaging about 15 points and 6 rebounds a game.

Given the quick turnaround and tight rotation last night – not to mention the level of competition – I expect Carlisle to go to the bench a bit more tonight. Expect a healthy dose of TJ McConnell careening into the lane.

How to Watch

Tipoff is at 7:00 PM ET.

TV: Bally Sports Indiana, NBA League Pass

Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan

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