Indiana Pacers 136 – San Antonio Spurs 98 (Jan. 25th, 2025) Game Recap

1. First Quarter

For the 22nd time this season, Indiana’s starting lineup was Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, Pascal Siakam, and Myles Turner. On Thursday night it was a very competitive first half with neither team leading by more than five points. In the first quarter tonight, it would be dominated by the Pacers. Through the first three and a half minutes, the two teams were tied at nine, but the Spurs never possessed the lead. Indiana broke the tie with a Nembhard layup to jumpstart a 9-2 run. Mathurin’s second three of the quarter was the final basket that put Indiana ahead 18-11. That seven-point lead would be the largest of the quarter until the final minute of the period when Turner splashed a right corner three to make it 33-22. San Antonio would score the final basket of the quarter to cut Indiana’s advantage to 33-24 at the end of the quarter. Nembhard was Indiana’s leading scorer with seven points, but Harrison Barnes led all players in scoring with 11 points.  In the first quarter, Indiana had five players with at least four points.

2. Second Quarter

In the opening quarter the Pacers held Victor Wembanyama in check with just five points. He failed to record an assist, rebound, steal, or block in his nine points in the first quarter. Wemby made his presence felt in the second quarter. He shifted the momentum from Indiana to San Antonio with a block, layup, steal, and a thirty foot three-pointer in thirteen seconds. That sequence made it a 37-31 ballgame. With 7:04 left in the first half, Wembanyama tied the game up with two free throws at 39 aside. The Pacers were able to outscore the Spurs by six in the next three minutes to retake a six-point advantage with an Obi Toppin layup. Tre Jones would cut San Antonio’s deficit to three points with 4:45 remaining in the half. Indiana would then go on a 15-3 run to close the quarter. Indiana’s fifteen-point lead came in the final second when Haliburton was able to go the length of the floor for a layup. Wembanyama’s stat line in the second quarter was 12 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, and 1 steal. Haliburton paced Indiana in the quarter with 8 points. Leading all scorers at intermission was Wembanyama with 17 points. Indiana’s leading halftime scorer was Mathurin with 11 points. Indiana had four players in double figures in the half.

3. Third Quarter

On Thursday night the San Antonio Spurs dominated the Indiana Pacers in the third quarter by outscoring them 45-23. They would do the same in this afternoon’s game, but not for the entire quarter. Stephon Castle scored six of the first nine points of the second half for the Spurs and cut Indiana’s advantage to nine points. Turner would eventually elevate the Pacers lead back to eleven points with a three-pointer with 8:19 remaining in the quarter. San Antonio responded by going on a 14-2 run to take its first of two leads of the game at 77-76 following a Wembanyama floater. Rick Carlisle’s team would call a timeout and respond by outscoring San Antonio 22-6 to take a 98-86 lead into the final quarter of play. During that run, Haliburton could not be stopped. He scored 16 consecutive points for the Pacers and 14 points in a 2:10 span to go from down one to ahead by twelve points. In the quarter, he scored 18 points on 7/8 shooting and a perfect 4/4 from three-point range. Barnes led San Antonio in the quarter with 12 points followed by Castle with 10 points. Indiana held Wembanyama to two points and one shot in his nine minutes of play. Haliburton led all players in scoring after three quarters with 28 points. Barnes led the Spurs in scoring with 23 points.

4. Fourth Quarter

After Haliburton willed the Pacers back to a double-digit lead, they were able to extend it at the start of the fourth quarter without him on the floor. With 9:25 left in the contest, Indiana was leading 106-94 after a Castle dunk for San Antonio. The Pacers then scored 17 straight points to blow the game wide open. Nembhard’s 32-foot three-pointer pushed Indiana’s advantage to 123-94 with 5:34 left in the game. T.J. McConnell played a critical role during that stretch with six points and an assist. Indiana’s lead would threaten forty points, but it never got to that point. The last points of the game came from Johnny Furphy with two free throws. The final score was 136-98. Indiana’s run ended up being 30-4 after that Caslte dunk with 9:25 left in the game.  

5. Top Performers

Tyrese Haliburton (28p, 4a, 3r, 2s, 2b), Pascal Siakam (23p, 11r, 3a, 3b, 2s), Andrew Nembhard (15p, 9a, 8r, 3s), Myles Turner (14p, 2r, 3a, 3b, 1s), Bennedict Mathurin (13p, 3r, 1a), T.J. McConnell (12p, 5r, 5a), and Thomas Bryant (10p, 3r, 1a, 3s). For San Antonio, Harrison Barnes (25p, 7r), Victory Wembanyama (20p, 12, 2a, 2s, 1b), Stephon Castle (17p, 6r, 6a), and Chris Paul (11p, 8a). For tonight’s full box score, click here.

6. Notes

• Indiana is now 25-20 on the season
• Indiana has now held its opponent under 100 points seven times this season
  • Only happened three times last season
• Indiana’s 38-point victory is the largest margin of victory this season
• Indiana’s starting lineup of Haliburton, Nembhard, Mathurin, Siakam, and Turner is 16-6
• Indiana improves to 14-4 when Tyrese Haliburton attempts 15+ field goals
• Indiana is 14-2 when Tyrese Haliburton scores 20+ points
• Indiana is 6-1 when Andrew Nembhard scores 15+ points
• Indiana’s starting five combined to score 93 points
• San Antonio’s 12 points in the fourth quarter are the fewest points scored by a Pacers opponent in a quarter
• The 68-point swing (30-point loss on Thursday and 38 point win today) is the largest swing in NBA history between two teams playing each other in back-to-back games
  • 66 points was previous record set in 1960 between the Detroit Pistons and St. Louis Hawks
• Andrew Nembhard’s 9 assists tied a game high this season
• Devin Vassell’s streak of 20+ point games ends at five games
• Devin Vassell’s 6 points are the second fewest points scored in a game this season
• Harrison Barnes has now recorded 20+ points in 7 games this season
  • Only second time this season where he has back-to-back games with 20+ points
• Pascal Siakam recorded his 7th double-double of the season
  • Siakam has recorded 20+ points and 10+ rebounds in 5 of those
• J. McConnell’s 12 points are the most since he scored 13 points against Oklahoma City on 12/26/24
• Tyrese Haliburton has scored 20+ points in 16 games this season
• Tyrese Haliburton’s 18 third quarter points are the most in a quarter this season for him
  • Ties for 3rd most in a quarter in his career
• Tyrese Haliburton has made 5+ threes in 8 games now this season
• Tyrese Haliburton’s 14 points in 2:10 stretch in the third quarter is the most in a 2:10 span in franchise history
• Thomas Bryant has now scored in three different countries this season – Mexico (with Heat), United States, and France

• Victory Wembanyama has held to 3 points in the second half
• Victor Wembanyama has recorded a block in 77 consecutive games – Spurs franchise record
• Victor Wembanyama recorded his 21st double-double on the season

7. Next Up

Indiana will have a few days off before returning home for a pair of games against the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks. Tip-off on Wednesday against the Pistons is set for 7pm at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Coverage will start at 6:30pm with the pregame show, hosted by Pat Boylan. Mark Boyle and Eddie Gill will have the play-by-play at 7pm on 93.5/107.5 The Fan.