Indiana Pacers use a vintage “3rd quarter haymaker” to sweep the season series over the Detroit Pistons.
The Good: The ball movement. The Pacers had 27 assists and only five turnovers. Indiana took advantage of a Detroit team that looked disinterested on defense most of the night.
Also, the return of the “3rd quarter haymaker”. The Eastern Conference Finals teams of 3-4 years ago made a habit of putting teams away with defensive stops and good ball movement. The Pacers tapped into their past and closed the 3rd quarter on a 20-5 run to blow the game open.
The Bad: The defensive rebounding was spotty as it has been most of the season. Andre Drummond had his way at times with Myles Turner. It’s a flaw with this team that probably won’t be corrected with the current personnel.
MVP: Paul George. When he’s good like he was in the 3rd quarter, he’s awfully fun to watch. That post-Trade Deadline slump is over.
LVP: Reggie Jackson was really bad in this game, which was to the Pacers’ benefit. He averaged 23.5 in the last two games, but had 6 points on 1-of-8 shooting.
X-Factor: Thad Young. He looked as healthy as he has been since suffering the wrist injury, scoring 18 points & grabbing 8 rebounds.