INDIANAPOLIS – Even with several important figures in street clothes, the result for Indiana playing in Milwaukee was all too familiar.
Both the Pacers and Bucks had major personnel issues on Monday, with no Giannis Antetokounmpo (knee), Myles Turner (left ankle) and Malcolm Brogdon (lower back).
The Bucks (28-14) torched the Pacers from behind the arc in a game that was over by the mid-way point of the first quarter, with a final score of 140-113.
Milwaukee controlled the pace all night long.
Jrue Holiday again got the best of his brothers, dominating with 28 points and 14 assists.
The Bucks went an eye-popping 21-of-39 (61.5 percent) from behind the arc.
Nate Bjorkgren made an interesting move in the starting lineup on Monday (see below) and it backfired.
Milwaukee scored 48 first-quarter points, which began the scene we’ve seen quite a lot when the Pacers take on their division rivals.
While Indiana cut the lead to around a dozen on a few occasions in the second half, it never got that margin back into single digits.
The lone bright spot from Indiana was 21 points off the bench by Jeremy Lamb
The Pacers will try and end a 6-game home losing streak on Wednesday against the Pistons.
Three Things Learned
1. Quite The Starting Lineup: With the Pacers missing two starters on Monday, the plug-in guys into the starting lineup seemed rather obvious—bump Doug McDermott back into that group for Myles Turner (obviously going smaller) and then T.J. McConnell at point guard for Malcolm Brogdon. But Nate Bjorkgren made a head scratching move in starting Edmond Sumner, instead of the Brogdon, giving the Pacers zero semblance of a point guard in the first five. No point guard had the Pacers without anyone to carry a consistent pace or initiate offense in the half court. It showed with the Bucks dominating this one from the opening tip. Not going with McConnell (and then having Aaron holiday as the PG with the reserves) was a big mistake.
2. No Giannis Measuring Stick: Just like it happened earlier in the season with Joel Embiid missing a matchup with the Pacers, or no Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving for Brooklyn last week, Indiana did miss out on the ultimate measuring stick opportunity with Giannis Antetokounmpo (knee) not playing on Monday. Of course, Indiana was at a severe disadvantage personnel wise without Myles Turner (left ankle) and Malcolm Brogdon (lower back). Now, obviously, this was a great break for the Pacers from a standings perspective and their hope to make the playoffs. But from a ‘can this team do something in the playoffs’ point of view, that test wasn’t there. When facing a healthy version of the big 3 teams in the East (Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Milwaukee), the Pacers have been outclassed. They have also lost all 3 games when these opponents have had their best player(s) not in uniform. Unless Indiana climbs all the way to the 4/5 matchup, they will be facing one of these teams in the first round of the playoffs (assuming they get there).
3. LeVert’s Start: We are now 7 games into Caris LeVert playing for the Pacers. He is shooting just under 40 percent from the floor, around 30 percent from behind the arc, with his assist and rebound numbers slightly below what he was putting up in Brooklyn. When you watch LeVert, there’s some definite rust, and that’s certainly to be expected, and he’s still trying to get his legs under him. Still, you see can clearly see his talent and the presence he brings to the Pacers as a playmaker. Indiana has not shied away from going to LeVert in key moments, too, which is an area he has actually been in with Brooklyn.
Pacers Upcoming Schedule
-Pistons (Wednesday, 3/24, at 7:00 PM)
-@Mavericks (Friday, 3-26, at 8:30 PM)
-@Wizards (Monday, 3/29, at 7:00 PM)
-Heat (Wednesday, 3/31, at 7:00 PM)
-Hornets (Friday, 4/2, at 8:00 PM)
