Tuesday, March 12 at 8:00 PM ET at Paycom Center
Game Preview
Next up, the Indiana Pacers take on one of the best in the West.
The Pacers (36-29) will wrap up a two-game road trip on Tuesday when they take on the Oklahoma City Thunder (45-19) at Paycom Center. Two elite offensive teams playing with late-season urgency will face off in the Sooner State.
The Pacers are the second-highest scoring team in the NBA and have the No. 2-ranked offense, while the Thunder are third in scoring and have the third-best offensive rating.
Indiana and OKC teams are also jockeying for positioning in their respective conferences, with just about a month left in the regular season.
As of Sunday night, just two games separated the four and eight seeds in the East, with the Pacers sitting in seventh after beating the Orlando Magic 111-97. In the West, the Thunder are in a three-way battle for the top seed with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Denver Nuggets, with just a half-game separating first and third.
PLAYOFF PICTURE: Track the Latest Standings, Potential Matchups, and More >>
The Pacers are 6-4 in their last 10 games, while the Thunder are 8-2 in that time frame.
While the Pacers are known for their offense, they’re coming off one of their top defensive performances of the season. The Pacers gave up a season-low 97 points in their win against the Magic, using a second-half push to help snap a two-game skid.
Sunday’s game was the Pacers' first without second-year guard Bennedict Mathurin, who leads the league’s highest-scoring bench at 14.5 points per game. It was announced over the weekend that he will miss the rest of the season with a labral tear in his right shoulder.
Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam each scored 20 points for the Blue & Gold in the win in Orlando, while T.J. McConnell and Obi Toppin chipped in 17 points each off the bench. McConnell has scored in double digits in three of the last four games.
The Thunder have won three straight coming into Tuesday’s matchup, including a 124-93 victory against the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.
Part of the Thunder’s rise this season can be attributed to the play of guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has emerged as an MVP candidate. The 25-year-old Canadian is averaging 31.1 points per game—second to just Dallas’ Luka Doncic—to go along with 6.4 assists and 5.5 rebounds.
While SGA has gotten plenty of headlines, second-year forward Jalen Williams has also turned heads this season, averaging 19 points, 4.5 assists, and 4.0 rebounds, and 7-foot-1 rookie center Chet Holmgren is scoring 16.9 points, pulling down 7.8 rebounds, and swatting 2.5 shots nightly.
This is the first matchup between the Pacers and Thunder this season, and the two teams will meet again in Indianapolis on April 5.
The Pacers will have a quick turnaround after playing the Thunder, as they return home to host the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday before welcoming the Brooklyn Nets to town on Saturday.
Projected Starters
Pacers: G - Tyrese Haliburton, G - Andrew Nembhard, F - Aaron Nesmith, F - Pascal Siakam, C - Myles Turner
Thunder: G - Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, G - Josh Giddey, F - Luguentz Dort, F - Jalen Williams, C - Chet Holmgren
Injury Report
Pacers: James Johnson - questionable (illness), Bennedict Mathurin - out (right shoulder labral tear), Doug McDermott - out (right calf strain)
Thunder: Jalen Williams - questionable (right ankle sprain), Ousmane Dieng - out (G League assignment)
Last Meeting
March 31, 2023: In their final meeting of the 2022-2023 season, a shorthanded Pacers squad posted a 121-117 win over the Thunder at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
After a tight 36 minutes, the Pacers used a 31-point fourth-quarter performance, which included some clutch shooting from the charity stripe, to secure a victory to end March.
The Pacers, leading by three points, intentionally fouled the Thunder with 10 seconds left in the game. After Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made both attempts, Pacers rookie Bennedict Mathurin was fouled and drained his attempts to put the game out of reach.
T.J. McConnell led the Pacers with 21 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists. Mathurin and Andrew Nembhard each scored 18, and Jalen Smith supplied 12 points and 15 rebounds. Indiana was without starting point guard Tyrese Haliburton and center Myles Turner in the game.
Thunder star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a game-high 39 points, going 17-for-17 from the free-throw line, to go with nine rebounds, and Josh Giddey scored 21 points.
Oklahoma City outshot Indiana 47.7 to 45.9 percent, but the Pacers made 12 3-pointers to the Thunder’s four threes. The Pacers won the rebounding margin 56-45.
Noteworthy
- Indiana and Oklahoma City have split a pair of games each of the last two seasons.
- Pacers forward Doug McDermott has missed six straight games due to a calf strain.
- Pacers center Myles Turner is 11 blocks away from passing Jermaine O’Neal (1,245 blocks) as the all-time franchise block leader.
- The Thunder are 13-16 versus the Pacers during the Oklahoma City era. OKC is 7-6 at home against the Pacers in this span and 6-10 at Indianapolis.
Broadcast Information (TV and Radio Listings >>)
TV: Bally Sports Indiana - Chris Denari (play-by-play), Quinn Buckner (analyst), Jeremiah Johnson (sideline reporter/host)
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan - Mark Boyle (play-by-play), Pat Boylan (studio host)
Tickets
The Pacers will be back at Gainbridge Fieldhouse to tip off a three-game homestand against DeMar DeRozan and the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday, March 13 at 7:30 PM ET. Find Tickets >>