The Indiana Pacers played a must-win game against the Thunder on Friday night. Oklahoma City was without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams, their two best scorers. The Game was also at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, so it was one that the Pacers had to have.
Indiana was able to do that, taking down the Thunder 126-112, It was a group effort to get the win as the Pacers hit 15 threes. Pascal Siakam led the team in scoring with 21 points. The bench was also phenomenal, scoring 59 points between six players.
Tyrese Haliburton really turned things on in the second half, scoring all eight of his points then. He also hit a couple of threes. What set him apart in this game was his passing though. The league leader in assists had 11 of them and that helped break a franchise record.
Tyrese Haliburton breaks Pacers single-season franchise assist record
Haliburton has been dishing out assists all season long and has done it better than any other Pacers players in history for a single season. He broke Mark Jackson's franchise record of 713 assists that he set in the 1997-98 season. Haliburton did it with four games still left to go.
We know that his passing is what makes Haliburton special. It's what makes other players want to play with him and what could attract more stars to play in Indiana. Haliburton's passing is one thing that is always there for him whether his shot is falling or not.
His shot has been falling more as of late, and it's a good thing too. The Pacers are in a dog fight to keep the 6th seed in the Eastern Conference so they don't have a play-in game to deal with. They're going to need Haliburton to be at his absolute best down the stretch to make sure they stay put.
The Pacers have a big game against the Heat on Sunday. That very well could determine the final seeding between the two teams and which of them will have to deal with a play-in game.