In some of the more recent wins for the Indiana Pacers, it was the first quarter that set the tone. Tonight, it was the second quarter that led to a 114-97 victory over the Toronto Raptors.
Offensively, the Pacers were able to put the basketball through the hoop, but the issue was they were allowing the Raptors to do the same thing on the other end of the floor. They put up 31 first quarter points, but allowed Toronto to outscore them by four. Both teams made 14 field goals, but the difference was that Toronto was able to knock down six three’s in comparison to three for Indiana.
In the second quarter, the Pacers made defensive adjustments. Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis didn’t play a second together to help with match-ups for Indiana. One of the players that saw some run for Indiana was the Butler graduate in Kelan Martin. He played just under ten minutes and scored 11 points on 5/9 shooting. Rookie Chris Duarte made his presence known in the quarter too (10p on a perfect 4/4 shooting). Defensively, the Pacers didn’t allow the Raptors to convert a single triple. Indiana outscored Toronto in the quarter 35-22.
The third quarter was a bit different than the previous two quarters for both teams. It was a nice balance of good offense, good defense, and both teams missing some open shots. However, Indiana was able to withstand the runs Toronto would make in the quarter. The Pacers saw their 11 point lead with 8:31 left in the quarter get cut down to 6 with 6:07 left in the third. Rick Carlisle‘s team would respond by extending their lead to 13 points in two minutes. Both teams would exchange buckets the final 4:07 with Indiana leading 92-81.
In the final quarter of play, Toronto made one small run, and that was it. They cut their deficit down to six at 92-86 with 10:23 left in the game. Over the course of the next 3 minutes and 37 seconds, Indiana would go on a 13-2 run to put the Raptors away. Their largest lead of the game for the blue and gold in the game was 17 points in the final minutes.
TOP PERFORMANCES: Domantas Sabonis (23p/18r), Caris LeVert (19p/5r/3a), Malcolm Brogdon (11p/12a/4r), and Kelan Martin (15p).
Next up for the Indiana Pacers are the defending world champions in the Milwaukee Bucks. Tip-off is scheduled for 5pm with pre-game coverage starting on the Indiana Pacers Radio Network and Bally Sports Indiana.
