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Game Rewind: Pacers 110, Lakers 100

Game Recap

What started as a miss turned into the Pacers' biggest make of the night.

Leading by just one point in the third quarter, Bojan Bogdanovic attempted an off-balance layup while streaking down the floor in transition. The layup rimmed out and bounced off the glass, quickly finding the hand of a flying Victor Oladipo, who pummeled it through the rim and sent the home crowd at Bankers Life Fieldhouse into a frenzy.

The dunk served as an exclamation point on the Pacers' overpowering third quarter, a period which they began trailing by two and finished up leading by 12 en route to their 110-100 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night.

"They were kind of cutting us in transition a little bit and we did a great job of slowing that down," explained Oladipo at his locker after the game. "In the second half, I think we did a great job of getting stops and defending at a high level"

Although the Pacers (41-30) led 92-80 entering the fourth, the final 12 minutes were not without drama for the Blue & Gold.

Indiana opened the final quarter off right, scoring two straight buckets to open up a 16-point lead, but the plucky Lakers (31-39) answered right back, breaking off a 7-0 run and causing Pacers head coach Nate McMillan to call for timeout just three minutes into the frame.

Out of the stoppage, the Pacers had the right response, opening up a 7-0 run of their own to regain their comfortable lead.

From there, Indiana cruised to the victory, sending the Lakers to their third consecutive loss.

"Give them credit, that's a good team," Lakers head coach Luke Walton said of the Pacers. "They were making, and not just one or two guys making shots, everyone was making shots for them. When we did get shots, we weren't finishing possessions out; but I just don't think we were physical enough on that end of the court."

Despite missing the previous game with a sprained left ankle, Myles Turner put on a performance that gave little doubt as to his level of health. The third-year pro led the team in scoring, racking up 21 points and hauling in seven rebounds, providing the perfect boost to a Pacers team that had dropped its last two games.

Turner's impressive performance on offense allowed the Pacers to overcome the nights rookie Kyle Kuzma and veteran Brook Lopez, who combined to score 50 points for the Lakers.

Alongside Turner were solid nights from Darren Collison (15 pts), Thaddeus Young (18 points), Oladipo (20 pts), and Lance Stephenson, who served as a spark off of the bench with 16 points and five boards.

Turner made his presence known from the tip, scoring Indiana's first seven points of the game.

But despite Turner's hot start to the night, it was the Lakers' offense that did the most damage in the opening quarter, finishing the frame having made 16-of-24 shots, which opened up a 37-29 L.A. lead.

After trailing for the majority of the first half, the Pacers finally broke through with under two minutes remaining in the second quarter as Collison hit Thad Young on his way to the rim for a powerful slam, putting Indiana up 54-53. While the Lakers were able to regain the lead, a late stepback jumper from Oladipo kept Indiana within two points at the break.

In the third quarter, it looked like it might be another offensive bonanza for both teams, as the points started to pile up from the outset.

But with 7:00 left in the third, a fastbreak from Bogdanovic turned into the highlight of the night. Bogdanovic's layup ended up rimming out, but as it glanced off the glass, Oladipo soared in and slammed it down with one hand, setting off the home crowd.

The powerful slam ended up being the impetus of a 16-6 Pacers run, helping Indiana build a 92-80 lead after outscoring the Lakers 35-21 in the third quarter.

From that point forward, the Pacers kept control of the game for the remainder of the night, using another run in the fourth quarter to put it away for good and bring Indiana one game closer to clinching a postseason berth.

Inside the Numbers

The Pacers shot 15-of-20 in the third quarter, opening up a 12-point lead on the Lakers.

Monday's win was the Pacers' ninth win of the season in which they've trailed by 10 or more points.

The Pacers only committed seven turnovers. Indiana is now 10-5 when committing 10 or fewer turnovers.

You Can Quote Me On That

"It was because Myles was coming back. I wanted to go with the lineup I've been starting all season. With those two lineups, with one our scoring has been up, but so has our points allowed, as indicated by the first quarter tonight. With Cory starting, our defense has been better. Basically, with Myles coming back, I wanted to get DC in the starting position and get Cory coming off the bench to match up with Thomas tonight." -Nate McMillan on starting Darren Collison

"It felt good, just getting used to playing with the first unit again. I haven't played with them at the start of a game in I don't know how long, maybe a month and a half, but it felt good. It's my responsibility to lead this team. I just wanted to make sure we got the win." -Darren Collison on returning to the starting lineup

"It's tough when they are all going. Someone that has his skill level and his skill set and his ability to break down a defense, makes it challenging. So, you can blitz but then they had Turner knocking down shots. You could switch, which we tried doing and he had his way with getting by the bigs into the paint and then he knocked down spot up shots too. He is an All-Star for a reason. He is a heck of a player and he had a really solid game tonight." -Lakers head coach Luke Walton on slowing down Oladipo

Stat of the Night

In his first start since returning from injury, Darren Collison passed out eight assists without committing a turnover. In his six games since returning from knee surgery, Collison has only committed four turnovers.

Noteworthy

  • Darren Collison started his first game since Feb. 3.
  • The Pacers and Lakers split their season series 1-1.
  • Indiana has won five straight home games against the Lakers.

Tickets

Following a meeting with the Pelicans on Wednesday, the Pacers return to Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, March 23 to host the Los Angeles Clippers at 7:00 PM ET! Find Tickets »