1. First Quarter

Prior to the All-Star break, slow starts plagued the Indiana Pacers. Resulting in a starting lineup shakeup with Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, and Myles Turner serving as the first five on the floor. Memphis opened the game with a 12-2 run in the first 3:32. Indiana’s largest deficit in the game was thirteen points with 5:46 left in the first quarter after three free throws from Jaylen Wells. Indiana would slowly chip away at its deficit and make it a management 33-28 game after twelve minutes of play. Indiana struggled from behind the arc, shooting 5/15 in the first quarter. Jaren Jackson Jr. and Aaron Nesmith were tied for the most points in the first quarter with six points. Memphis shot 54% in the first quarter.

2. Second Quarter

Tonight’s second quarter was the best quarter of the season, at this point. Indiana shot a blistering 69.6% in the quarter from the field and 58.3 % from the three-point line. Memphis started the quarter by pushing its lead back to eight points, but Indiana would come storming back. With 6:38 left in the half, a Nembhard triple would tie the game for the first time. On the following possession, Nesmith gave Indiana its first lead with a reverse layup. The Grizzlies tied the game at 51, and then the Pacers quickly set themselves apart from the Grizzlies. Turner scored 12 straight points for Indiana to push the Pacers ahead 60-51 with 4:04 left in the half. Haliburton drilled a three to end Turner’s streak to push the Pacers ahead by twelve. Indiana’s largest lead in the first half came in the final seconds when Obi Toppin splashed a corner three in front of the Grizzlies bench. At halftime, the Pacers lead the Grizzlies 78-59. Turner’s 15 points in the second quarter made him the leading scorer in the quarter, and at halftime. Haliburton also had 10 points in the second quarter. Those two came one point short of tying the number of points Memphis scored in the quarter. Memphis was led in scoring at halftime by Jackson Jr. with 13 points. Ja Morant was held to 2 points on 1/6 shooting in the first half.

3. Third Quarter

After putting up 50 points in the second quarter, Indiana continued its red shot shooting. Memphis had to burn a timeout just over two minutes into the second half because Indiana pushed the advantage 26 points when Nembhard capped a 7-0 run to start the half with a floater. Memphis would respond coming out of the timeout by going on an 11-2 run to cut its deficit to 17 points. The Grizzlies would completely change the dynamic of the game when Jackson Jr. converted a floater just inside the free throw line to draw within four points. They went from trailing 85-59 to trailing 91-85. Morant was a big reason why, scoring eight points during that stretch. Like the first quarter, Rick Carlisle’s team closed the third quarter strong by extending the lead back to double figures. After thirty-six minutes of basketball, Indiana’s advantage was 102-91. Morant’s eight points lead all scorers in the period. Indiana’s leading scorer in the quarter was Haliburton with 7 points. Going into the fourth, Desmond Bane, Myles Turner, and Tyrese Haliburton were all tied for the game lead in scoring with 17 points. Siakam was the only starter for the Pacers that wasn’t in double figures through three quarters.  

4. Fourth Quarter

The Pacers would prevent the Grizzlies from making a run in the fourth quarter like they did in the third quarter. Indiana was able to maintain a double-digit lead for the entirety of the final quarter. The Grizzlies threatened to make it a single digit contest a couple of times, but they could not get over the hump as the Pacers had answers for anything they threw at them. Nesmith would deliver a three-pointer with 3:49 remaining in the game to make it a 16-point game, but there was still a small chance with Memphis calling a timeout to make changes to make one final run. The real dagger came when Haliburton drilled a triple a minute later to extend the lead to 17 points. Less than a minute later, the two teams would empty their benches and get the reserves in. Indiana begins the second half of the season with a 127-113 victory.

5. Top Performers

Tyrese Haliburton (22p, 9a, 5r, 1s, 1b), Myles Turner (17p, 10r, 7b), Pascal Siakam (16p, 4r), Bennedict Mathurin (16p, 4r, 2s), Aaron Nesmith (13p, 7r), Obi Toppin (12p, 5r), and Andrew Nembhard (11p, 4a, 3r). For Memphis, Desmond Bane (23p, 7a, 5r), Jaren Jackson Jr. (18p, 7r, 4a), Jaylen Wells (17p, 4r), Ja Morant (12p, 6r), and Santi Aldama (10p, 7r, 3a). For tonight’s full box score, click here.

6. Notes

• Indiana is now 31-23 and 15-9 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse
  • Indiana is 1-0 post All-Star Break
  • Indiana is now 8 games over .500 for the third time this season
• Indiana’s 50 second quarter points tied the second most points in a quarter in franchise history
• Indiana had 7 players reach double digits
• Indiana’s starting five scored combined to score 79 points
• Indiana is now 17-2 when Tyrese Haliburton scores 20+ points
• Aaron Nesmith’s 13 points tied a season high for a third time
• Bennedict Mathurin is averaging 20.7 ppg in three games since being removed from the starting lineup
• Bennedict Mathurin has scored 15+ points in five consecutive games
• Myles Turner recorded his 9th double-double of the season
• Myles Turner’s 7 blocks marked a season high
• Myles Turner was a team high +22 in +/-
• Tyrese Haliburton led the team in scoring for the first time since scoring 28 points in Paris on January 25th
  • Haliburton’s last game as the leading scorer in the United States was January 6th when he scored 23 points in a win over the Brooklyn Nets
  • Haliburton has scored 20+ points in back-to-back games

7. Next Up

Indiana will have a couple of days off before welcoming the LA Clippers to Gainbridge Fieldhouse for their only visit to Indiana. Pregame coverage will start at 4:30pm with Pat Boylan and then Mark Boyle will have the play-by-play with Eddie Gill at 5pm on 93.5/107.5 The Fan.