The Pacers came up short in one of the more entertaining games you will see at the Fieldhouse, finding themselves on the wrong end of a wild finish after enjoying the other side several times of late.
Did he tip it in time? Yep, he tipped it in time.
Everyone in a boisterous Gainbridge Fieldhouse had the same question which was quickly answered after LeBron James slipped under the hoop with no resistance to tip in a miss by Luka Doncic, just before the red light flashed on to end the game. 120-119, Laker win.
After so many thrilling wins of late, this loss has to sting and also highlights how the Pacers can improve as they get into playoff mode.
After battling back from two separate 13-point deficits in the second half, the Pacers had the lead following a floater and-1 by Tyrese Haliburton with 40 seconds left. A defensive substitution took out Haliburton for Jarace Walker and the move worked. Walker, jumped to help on Dorian Finney-Smith, defend his shot at the rim and grab the rebound to secure a valuable stop.
With Haliburton at the scorer’s table, Rick Carlisle tried to save his final timeout and left the defensive lineup in to try to score what could be a game-sealing bucket. It didn’t work and Carlisle took the timeout home with him. Even if Carlisle thought the team had an advantage early in the possession, certainly everyone could see the possession getting bogged down. Even with 10 seconds left on the shot clock a timeout to add Haliburton would’ve helped.
Instead the desperation shot by Mathurin, let the Lakers come down for one final possession with Luka and LeBron. That’s a tough ask, but the Pacers on the court failed to foul with a foul to give. Then Walker assumed Luka’s shot was all or nothing and didn’t get in the mix with LeBron until it was too late and the Lakers’ star had enough tenths of seconds to tap home the winner.
Walker had been pretty solid, playing more minutes off the bench than usual, mainly because Ben Sheppard has become so lost offensively that they had to get him off the court. The bench minutes early in the second quarter and fourth quarter put the Pacers in a bind, where they were chasing from behind. A 21-3 run by the Lakers to start the seconds quarter, wiped out the Pacers 5-point lead after the first quarter. The starters eventually kept in touch, to only be down 13 at the break.
Then after the starters erased that deficit in the third quarter, a similar stretch to start the fourth quarter had the Pacers down, again. In these types of games, the Pacers need at least Pascal Siakam or Tyrese Haliburton on the floor with the bench. If they can rotate between Aaron Nesmith or Andrew Nembhard, as well, even better.
Simply put, for the playoffs the Pacers can rely on Mathurin (23 points last night) and Obi, with smaller stretches of TJ McConnell pending how he’s shooting it. Those ninth and tenth spots with Thomas Bryant and Walker or Sheppard have to remain situational.
Haliburton had a somewhat strange night, just 1 for 9 from three, but still had 16 points and 18 assists with one turnover. While stuck at the scorer’s table in the waning seconds, he also spent an inordinate amount of time waiting to check in earlier in the fourth quarter. He usually checks in for the final six or so minutes but he was unable to swap out with Walker for around two minutes due to continuous play. Finally, the Pacers took a timeout with 4:05 remaining.
One other little thing that bugged me after the fact was that three times, the Pacers had potential three-point shots ruled twos due to a foot on the line. Myles Turner had a corner three set up nicely, but left a toe on the line. Tyrese Haliburton shuffled out to the line for his signature step back and made a shot that was initially ruled a three, but was later overturned. Later the same thing happened with Bennedict Mathurin, as he flowed into a three at the top of the arc. Those three points would’ve helped, but also serve as an easy way to highlight how all of the little things within a game have to be accounted for and buttoned up heading into the upcoming playoff situations.
Overall, the night at the Fieldhouse was electric with a ton of LeBron, Luka and Lakers fans from probably a 300 mile radius. Made for a crazy atmosphere and one the Pacers handled quite well until they didn’t right before the buzzer.
On the road, again
The Pacers have a back-to-back game in Washington on Thursday night. Going from that crazy atmosphere at the Fieldhouse on a nationally televised game to a game against a lottery opponent in a juiceless arena will require a strong level of professionalism as the Pacers have no room for error in their battle for the fourth spot in the East.
All are healthy for the Pacers, so that playing rotation may go a bit deeper in this one considering the circumstances. The Wizards have several rotation players out, so their depth should be a difference. However, with Jorand Poole, Bub Carrington, Krhis Middleton and rookie Alex Sarr, they will have more than enough scoring options to push the Pacers, as we’ve seen from this crew before.
Pacers vs. Wizards
**Where:**Capital One Arena, Washington, D.C.
When: Thursday, Mar. 27, 2025, 7:00 p.m. ET
TV: FanDuel Sports Network
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan
Odds: Pacers -13
Projected Starters
Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, Myles Turner
Wizards: Jordan Poole, Bub Carrington, Khris Middleton, Justin Champagnie, Alex Sarr
Injuries
Pacers: Isaiah Jackson (Achilles) - out
Wizards: Saddiq Bey (knee) - out, Malcolm Brogdon (ankle) - out, Bilal Coulibaly (hamstring) - out, Kyshawn George (ankle) - out, Corey Kispert (thumb) - out, Marcus Smart (non-COVID illness) - out
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