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Post-Game Grades: Indiana Pacers rally from a 21-point deficit to break Frank Vogel, Magic

By Ben Gibson

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The Indiana Pacers dug themselves out of another 20+ point hole for the third time this season, this time at the expense of the Orlando Magic.

Frank Vogel is hanging by a thread and the Indiana Pacers just added to his and the Orlando Magics’ pain by rallying from a 21-point deficit for a 114-112 win on Saturday night.

100. Final. 112. 38. 114

This is the third time this season that the Pacers spotted their opponent a 20+ point lead before frantically getting themselves together to pull off a win. The other two were against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons.

The volatile nature of this season’s Pacers team is both a blessing and a curse as no deficit or lead is ever safe.

The Bad: Spotting opponents 21-point leads is no way to go through the season, son. In the first 23 minutes of the game, Indiana was outplayed on both ends of the floor by the Magic. They took a 69-48 lead with under a minute left in the first half.

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They outshot the Pacers (61.4% to 43.2%), outrebounded the Pacers (24 to 16), and sported a net rating of 42.7 as the NBA’s 23rd ranked offense and 27th ranked defense beat them down, in every phase of the game.

The Good: But from that point — 42 seconds left in the second quarter — the teams’ fortunes were reversed. It was Indiana outshooting the Magic (65.1% to 45.5%), outrebounding the Magic (22-16), remind us that the Pacers are the NBA’s 7th ranked offense and play average defense.

MVP: Lance Stephenson made his first shot — confidence baby, confidence — and more importantly closed out the fourth quarter with 9 of his 21 points on the night.

LVP: Myles Turner, but considering this is his first game back from injury and he got in foul trouble, it isn’t wise to put too much thought into his performance.

X-Factor: The Pacers were at their best when Thaddeus Young was on the floor, thanks in large part to him limiting Gordon to 7 points after the team’s terrible start.

DARREN COLLISON. B. The typical sort of Darren Collison game: Score a few buckets and set up teammates. Collison often gets the ball rolling regardless of whether him or someone else getting ends up getting the assist in the box score. Collison had 11 points, 7 assists, and 4 rebounds.. PG. Indiana Pacers

B. Victor Oladipo got off to a slow start with only 8 points at halftime, but he doubled his efforts in the second half to end the night with a team-high 24 points. Oladipo also had 6 assists and 5 rebounds.. SG. Indiana Pacers. VICTOR OLADIPO

C. Bojan Bogdanovic had 9 points on 2 of 5 shooting from the field, but at least he connected on one 3-pointer.. SF. Indiana Pacers. BOJAN BOGDANOVIC

A little bit of everything from Thaddeus Young as he posted 20 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals, an assist and a block.. PF. Indiana Pacers. THADDEUS YOUNG. B+

Meh. Returning from a 9 game absence + foul trouble = ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. C. Indiana Pacers. MYLES TURNER

B. Domantas Sabonis came up just short of a double-double with 17 points and 9 rebounds. He also had two assists as his passing remains an underrated part of his game.. C. Indiana Pacers. DOMANTAS SABONIS

LANCE STEPHENSON. A. Lance Stephenson broke the 20-point mark for the first time this season. He’s had plenty of games with points in the teens, but tonight he finally got over that hump.. SG. Indiana Pacers

CORY JOSEPH. C. 2 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists. Not terrible, not great, either. Credit for his defensive efforts like always.. PG. Indiana Pacers

C. Indiana Pacers. AL JEFFERSON. C+. Al Jefferson was pressed into service thanks to both Turner’s and Sabonis’ foul trouble. 6 points and rebound.

Next: Physicality is a state of mind for Domantas Sabonis

The Pacers host the Charlotte Hornets on Monday, the Grizzlies again on Wednesday, and then the Hornets on the road on Friday.

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