The Pacers defeated the Warriors 123-111 on Friday night to win their sixth straight game on the road, and it was a significant victory in many ways.

 

 

For Pacers supporters, the second half of this game was an absolute pleasure to witness as the blue and gold took command of the contest halfway through the third quarter and exhausted the

 

Dubs with a valiant defensive display. With the degree of physical play that is now permitted in the NBA, that effort is now required. With six steals and six blocks, the Pacers forced 11 turnovers from GSW in the second half, proving to be the more aggressive team.

 

Speaking of blocks, huge No. 33 passed Jermaine O’Neal to become the franchise record after Myles Turner blocked Jonathan Kuminga in the third quarter, which is one of the reasons this game was significant. The milestone block has significance for the game’s flow as well. After Pascal Siakam had just tied the score at 70, Turner denied Kuminga at the rim, giving the Pacers a chance to go into transition. The Pacers would not let up their lead after Siakam converted a missed shot.

Tyrese Haliburton was on full display as the Pacers kept up with the Warriors in a high-scoring first half, which added extra significance to the game. The squad made 11 of 23 three-pointers in the first half, with Hali going 3 for 4 from three-land. Haliburton’s bomb at the clock ended the half and pulled the Pacers to within one point at the half. Despite shooting just 4 of 13 from three in the second half, the Pacers were thankfully able to use their defense to mask their mistakes.

 

With a final total of 26 points and 11 assists, Haliburton brought back memories of the IST run with a pair of deep 3-balls. Now that Hali is performing at this level and Siakam is still a huge source of strength, the two seem to be a great match made in heaven. In the end, Siakam recorded a season-high 16 rebounds, 6 assists, and 25 points. These two individuals have the ability to make buckets for themselves or others while maintaining the flow of the ball.

Conversely, over the last ten games—though I prefer to use 15 game samples, which is almost a month’s worth of games—the Pacers defense rating is sixth in the NBA. During that time, the team’s net rating is in the top 10 in both samples, but its defensive rating is ranked 12th. Given that there have also been some difficult losses mixed in, it indicates how well they have performed in these victories. The Pacers’ victory in San Francisco was also crucial to their hopes of making the playoffs in the East. The Pacers are alone in sixth place with a 1.5 game lead over the Heat and Sixers after losing to Miami and Philadelphia on time.

 

The Pacers and Lakers will play their final back-to-back on Sunday at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. After that, they’ll remain in the city and take on the Clippers on Monday. Similar to the Warriors, the Lakers are in a do-or-die situation right now, sitting ninth in the West, and they are eager to move up in the standings as the regular season draws to a close.