The Pacers had a spirited effort against the Sixers but failed to value the most important thing...the ball.
The Pacers appeared to be in bounce-back mode against the 76ers after their no show loss in Detroit, pushing a first half lead to as much as 10 points. But their struggles to maintain possession of the ball, caught up with them in the second half, as the Sixers pulled away for a 113-104 win.
The loss moved the Pacers to 0-2 on their current five game road trip with the next tip set for TD Garden against the Celtics on Wednesday night. On the bright side for the Pacers, only a handful of us were aware of their losing issues in Philly since much of the state was fully engaged in IU’s college football championship win in what turned out to be an epic game in Miami starting shortly after the Pacers game.
Congrats to the Hoosiers on the most of improbable runs to that championship game AND closing it out with a title that will be celebrated in B-Town forever.
Now back to less impressive feats, which were delivered by the Pacers against the Sixers. Considering the Pacers shot the ball at a solid clip both inside and out (38% from 3-land) and won the rebounding battle 46-40 there were winning indicators available to latch onto.
However, the end of the first half was a prime example of how their inability to take care of the ball, the primary task of any team, made for a losing formula. In fact, of his team’s 24 turnover performance and the type of turnovers resulting in 18 Philly steals, Rick Carlisle described it as ‘impossible’ for his team to win.
As mentioned above, the Pacers had a 10-point lead in the second quarter, but over the last couple of minutes gave up a 5-0 run highlighted by a stop via rebound by Aaron Nesmith, immediately followed by a bad outlet pass, stolen by Tyrese Maxey for a bucket.
The Pacers turnovers were rarely dribbled off the foot or bad pass out of bounds, but instead live ball turnovers that went the other way and with Maxey and VJ Edgecomb involved, went the other way in a hurry. Maxey had 8 of the 18 steals, fueling his 29 point, 8 assist night. The Sixers scored 28 points off of those 24 rebounds and had a 25 to 6 advantage in fast break points.
The Pacers went all in for the win with this one, as Pascal Siakam (35 min), Andrew Nembhard (36 min) and Aaron Nesmith (32 min) all played over 30 minutes after sitting out in Detroit. Nembhard had a team high 25 points and Siakam added 24 points. However, the trio also combined to commit 15 of the team’s 24 turnovers, with Nemby and Nesmith accounting for 11 donations.
Teams continue to enjoy the opportunity to kick the Pacers while they are down and that won’t change as the road trip continues in Boston on Wednesday before heading to OKC. Regardless of how well the Pacers play, winning will remain a challenge on this roadie, but definitely impossible if they don’t take better care of the ball.
Pacers vs. Celtics
**Where:**TD Garden, Boston, MA
When: Wednesday, January 21, 2026 - 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: FanDuel Sports Network
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan
Odds: Pacers +10.5
Projected Starters
Pacers: Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Johnny Furphy, Pascal Siakam, Jay Huff
Celtics: Payton Pritchard, Derrick White, Sam Hauser, Jaylen Brown, Neemias Queta
Injuries
Pacers: Bennedict Mathurin (thumb) - out, Obi Toppin (hammy) - out, Tyrese Haliburton (Achilles) - out
Celtics: Jaylen Brown (hamstring) - probable, Josh Minott (ankle) - out, Jayson Tatum (Achilles) - out
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