Game Rewind: Pacers 98, Pistons 104

Just like they've done all season, the Indiana Pacers scrapped and clawed until the bitter end on Friday night. This time, however, they came up just short.

Despite holding the Pistons to just one field goal over the final nine minutes of regulation, the Pacers (16-13) fell to Detroit (16-13) on Friday night at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, 104-98.

Coupled with Wednesday's loss to Oklahoma City, the Pacers dropped the final two games of a season-long, six-game homestand after winning the first four.

"I said after the game, we've got to stay confident, stay positive, stay aggressive," Victor Oladipo, who scored a game-high 26 points, said after the loss. "Because at the end of the day, we've been in that position before. When we've won, everybody's excited, everybody's happy.

"Now it didn't turn out the way we wanted, but we learn from it, we move on, and we get ready for Sunday (in Brooklyn)."

After trailing by as many as 16 points in the fourth quarter, the Pacers charged back, trimming the deficit to 100-97 on Myles Turner's bucket with 2:58 remaining.

Thaddeus Young hit one of two free throws with 1:34 left to make it a two-point game. Then, after Reggie Jackson missed a jumper, the Pacers had a chance to take the lead when Oladipo drove and found Lance Stephenson open in the corner.

Stephenson couldn't get the shot to fall. Turner corralled the offensive rebound to give the Pacers a second chance, but wound up missing from the right wing after a timeout.

"That's a shot I work on, a shot I shoot with confidence," Turner said. "I think I flicked it instead of holding my release. It's one that hurts. I love that moment, I live for that moment, to be the guy to take that last shot."

Jackson came up with the rebound and then knocked down both foul shots to give Detroit a four-point lead with 18.1 seconds remaining.

Andre Drummond blocked Oladipo on the next possession to seal the win for the Pistons over their Central Division rivals.

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The Pacers got off to a sluggish start, opening the game 1-for-7 from the field and falling into an early 10-4 hole. They righted the ship with a 7-0 run to take a brief lead, but Detroit outscored Indiana 17-8 the rest of the quarter.

Domantas Sabonis gave Indiana a nice spark off the bench in the second quarter. The reserve center scored eight straight points for the Pacers, capping off the sequence with a thunderous dunk on Pistons big man Eric Moreland after a behind-the-back dish from Stephenson.

Sabonis' strong play sparked a Pacers rally, as the Blue & Gold methodically chipped away at the Pistons' lead, trimming a 14-point deficit down and eventually retaking the lead on Oladipo's 3-pointer with 1:26 remaining in the first half. Detroit moved back in front on Reggie Bullock's corner three with 11.1 seconds left, but Oladipo sank another triple with 0.3 seconds left that gave the hosts a 54-52 advantage at halftime.

Detroit, however, opened the second half with a 7-0 run to move back in front. The Pacers tied the game at 59 on Darren Collison's 3-pointer with 10:01 left in the third quarter, but the Pistons moved back in front on Bullock's layup a minute later and remained in front for the rest of the frame.

Detroit closed the third quarter on a 13-4 run and took an 86-74 lead into the final period.

"Today for whatever reason, we didn't have the start that we needed (in the third quarter) to really step on them," Collison said. "We've got to be better. No excuses."

The visitors added to their lead in the opening half of the fourth quarter, pushing the margin to 16 points with 9:03 remaining before the Pacers began their final rally.

The Pacers scored nine unanswered points from the free throw line to trim the deficit to 95-88, holding Detroit scoreless for over four minutes. Two free throws by Bullock temporarily stopped the bleeding for the Pistons, but a Young jumper and an Oladipo 3-pointer on the next two Pacers possessions made it 97-93 with 4:07 to play.

Oladipo led all scorers with 26 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. The former Indiana University All-American went just 8-for-22 from the field, though he was 5-for-12 from 3-point range.

Turner added 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Young (12 points and eight rebounds), Sabonis (11 points and seven boards), and Collison (10 points and five assists) also scored in double figures, while Stephenson chipped in nine points, eight rebounds, and five assists off the bench.

Drummond led the Pistons with 23 points on 9-of-13 shooting, 13 rebounds (six offensive), and three blocks. Bullock chipped in 15 points in the win.

It was the second road victory in as many nights for Detroit, who won in Atlanta on Thursday. Prior to that, the Pistons had dropped seven straight contests.

The Pacers now briefly hit the road, heading to Brooklyn to face the Nets on Sunday before returning to The Fieldhouse to host the Boston Celtics on Monday night.

The Pistons missed 14 of their final 15 shots and went just 4-for-22 (18.2 percent) in the fourth quarter, but hung on for the win.

Oladipo has now scored 20 or more points in 20 games this season, a feat he accomplished just 18 times last season with Oklahoma City.

Pacers forward Bojan Bogdanovic struggled from the field, scoring just four points on 2-of-11 shooting (0-for-3 from beyond the arc). Indiana was outscored by 24 points when Bogdanovic was on the floor.

The Pistons set a new season high with 10 blocks, three each by Drummond and Moreland.

The Pistons committed just nine turnovers, while forcing the Pacers into 14.

Indiana outscored Detroit 19-7 in fastbreak points.

"We did dig a hole tonight. We're just not executing. Offensively, we're not getting the quality of shots...we're taking a lot of tough shots. We had (15) assists at halftime and only (six) in the second half." -Pacers head coach Nate McMillan

"Some days I make shots, some days I don't make shots. Sometimes they trap me and I just make the right play. It is what it is. I've just got to find different spots to be effective." -Oladipo

"I don't know what's up with us. It's like we play better coming from behind, but we can't be that team coming down the stretch. We can't put ourselves in that position. I just like the fight and the grit that we have and we're going to have to continue that the rest of the season." -Turner

"We had some periods of great offense, but for the most part down the stretch we just had to grind it out. That's going to happen sometimes, particularly on the road and particularly on the second night of a back-to-back." -Pistons head coach Stan Van Gundy

The Pacers shot just 29.5 percent after halftime, going 13-for-44 from the field. It was their worst shooting percentage in any half this season.

The Pacers head to Brooklyn to take on the Nets on Sunday, Dec. 17 at 6:00 PM ET.

The Pacers return to Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Monday, Dec. 18 to host Kyrie Irving and the Boston Celtics at 7:00 PM ET. Find Tickets »