Indiana Pacers: Studs and duds from thriller with Heat
Final Score: Indiana Pacers 111- Miami Heat 108
The Indiana Pacers headed to South Beach on Friday night looking to start a two game losing streak following a win against the Celtics on Wednesday. The Pacers not only picked up the dub on Friday, but did so in thrilling fashion, as Tyrese Haliburton hit a clutch three with 3 seconds left to put the Pacers up for good.
Which Pacers played well, and which didn’t? Lets dive in.
Studs
The “wannabe all-star” scored 43 points on a scorching hot 10-16 shooting from deep, scoring a now combined 91 points in the three games since Wally Szczerbiak’s unflattering comments towards Haliburton. This was a masterclass from the third-year pro, combining sweet shooting, elite playmaking, and hustle on the defensive end with a steal and a block. And not to only comment about the stats, the eye test was there when Haliburton calmly hit the game winning dagger with 3 seconds left to go in the game, capping off a 40+ point explosion that further cements Haliburton’s all-star campaign.
Buddy Hield
While Haliburton’s night from deep will be remembered more, Buddy also shot the ball terrifically in the win. Buddy scored all 21 of his points on 7-11 shooting from 3, providing timely swings of momentum when the Pacers needed it. After a few average games from Buddy recently, it was nice to see the class of 2016’s leading scorer do what he does best: shoot the lights out.
Jalen Smith
What a game for the former 2020 lottery-pick. In just 23 minutes off the bench, Smith posted 14 points(6-9 FG), 11 rebounds, and 3 blocks, showcasing a dominant presence in the paint whenever he was on the court. Smith is quietly stringing together a solid slew of games, which is encouraging to see after his play started to fall-off after getting replaced in the starting lineup by Aaron Nesmith.
Duds
Given the chance to start in place of the injured Aaron Nesmith, Mathurin didn’t exactly seize the opportunity. While it was hard to not give the ball to Haliburton when he is shooting the way he did on Friday, Mathurin struggled to contribute much of anything when he was given the chance, scoring only 6 points(2-6 FG), 2 rebounds, no assists, and 2 turnovers. Mathurin has had a bit of a rookie wall recently, shooting 30.33% from the field in his last 3 games, and contributing no assists and 5 turnovers in that span. The rookie will look to break out of his mini-slump Monday against Zion Williamson and the Pelicans.
Myles Turner
Similar to Mathurin, Turner has been in his own sort of slump recently as well. While he is still shooting the ball alright, his presence has not been quite the same as it was earlier in the season, as Turner has only gone over the 20 point mark once in his past 8 games. Scoring as many points as fouls(5) is not how you want your star center to be playing, and Turner may need to step up his play with the emergence of Jalen Smith in recent games
The Indiana Pacers(17-16) will finish the last leg of their road trip Monday against the Pelicans(20-12) in New Orleans. Indiana Pacers: Studs and Duds from thrilling win over Heat
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