Game Rewind: Pacers 130, Hawks 143

Saturday, March 25 at 5:00 PM ET at State Farm Arena

With 7:25 remaining in the third quarter on Saturday night in Atlanta, Hawks All-Star guard Trae Young was ejected during a timeout with the score tied at 84. It was the type of moment that figured to be a turning point in the game, but unfortunately for the Pacers, it did not swing the game in their favor.

After Tyrese Haliburton hit a free throw for Young's technical out of the timeout, Atlanta (37-37) outscored Indiana 41-22 over the next 12 minutes to break away from the Pacers (33-42) and ultimately cruised to a 143-130 win.

The Blue & Gold, playing a back-to-back on extra short rest, seemingly ran out of gas down the stretch. After playing a 7:00 PM game on Friday night in Boston, the team had to fly three hours to Atlanta, then play an early 5:00 PM tip against the Hawks.

The Pacers were in Saturday's game against the high-scoring Hawks for so long thanks in large part to a brilliant stretch from Jordan Nwora. The 6-8 forward scored 25 points in the second quarter -- setting a new regular-season franchise record -- and finished with a team-high 33 points and seven rebounds, going 12-for-18 from the field, 4-for-7 from 3-point range, and 5-for-5 from the free throw line.

All told, eight Pacers finished in double figures, including Haliburton, who collected another double-double with 19 points and 13 assists. But it wasn't enough to overcome a 143-point outburst from the Hawks, who tallied 76 points in the paint and also went 15-for-30 from 3-point range.

With the loss, the Pacers slipped into 12th place in the Eastern Conference, three games back of 10th and the final spot in the upcoming Play-In Tournament with seven games remaining in the regular season.

PLAYOFF PICTURE: Track the Latest Standings, Remaining Schedules, and More >>

Andrew Nembhard got the Pacers off to a fast start on Saturday. The rookie out of Gonzaga quickly scored Indiana's first seven points and 10 of their first 14 to help the visitors out to an early lead.

The Pacers converted 10 of their first 13 shots as a team and led 22-13 before the Hawks answered with a run of their own. Rookie forward A.J. Griffin hit two threes during a 12-3 Atlanta run, the second of which tied the game at 25.

Griffin added a third three with 1:18 remaining in the first quarter that gave the Hawks a 35-32 lead. Buddy Hield tied the game with a trey of his own on the other end, but Atlanta scored the final four points of the frame. Young hit a jumper, then dished to Onyeka Okongwu for a bucket on the next possession to give the hosts a 39-35 lead after one.

Haliburton, playing for the second straight night after missing the previous six games due to injury, played the entire first quarter and tallied nine points and six assists for Indiana.

The second quarter was all about Nwora. The third-year forward scored 18 of Indiana's first 22 points in the frame. He drilled a three on the first possession of the quarter, added a three-point play at 10:22, and a dunk at 9:34.

But the real flurry of points came a few minutes later, when Nwora scored on four straight Indiana possessions. He knocked down another trey at 6:26 and a midrange jumper at 5:52. The next time down the floor, he hoisted a heat-check three from the top of the key that swished through the net. T.J. McConnell then dished to a streaking Nwora, who threw down a a one-hand jam.

"I hit an easy three in the corner and then from there, (Pacers head coach) Rick (Carlisle) just called a couple plays, put me in some ball screens and I was able to make stuff happen off of that," Nwora said. "He trusted me, I trusted myself, and once I saw a few go in, I just had a lot of confidence moving forward after that."

Despite all that early scoring, it wasn't until Nwora converted a three-point play on the baseline with 3:14 remaining in the frame that Indiana took the lead at 64-61. Nwora's layup at 1:30 and two free throws at 1:11 capped a remarkable 25-point quarter, the most by a Pacers player since quarter stats were first tracked in 1996-97.

"He has the ability to get going," Carlisle said of Nwora's record-setting performance. "We saw it when he was with Milwaukee against us, he hit four, five threes. He wasn't exhibiting some of these other skills (with the Bucks), putting it on the floor, playing in pick-and-roll, those kinds of things...He's got a lot stuff (to his game). The thing I like most about tonight, he did it in the most efficient way that he's played so far."

Aaron Nesmith provided an exclamation point in the final minute of the frame, throwing down a massive slam over Hawks center Clint Capela. That pushed the lead to 74-68, though Atlanta managed four points over the final 40 seconds to make it a two-point game at halftime.

The Hawks surged back ahead in the opening minutes of the third quarter. They led 84-81 when Young drained a deep three from near the logo. Officials ruled that Young kicked his leg out after the shot to trip Nesmith and wiped out the shot by calling an offensive foul.

Young was still upset after Haliburton hit a tying three on the other end and the Hawks called a timeout. As he headed to the Atlanta bench, he slammed the ball in disgust and threw it at referee Scott Wall. That outburst earned the Hawks' leading scorer an ejection with 7:25 remaining in the third quarter.

But with Young out of the game, Dejounte Murray stepped up to lead Atlanta's offense over the remainder of the quarter. The 26-year-old scored eight of the Hawks' next 13 points to help Atlanta regain the lead.

Nwora checked back in and added five more points in the final minutes of the frame, but 3-pointers by former Pacer Aaron Holiday and Saddiq Bey in the final 1:13 extended the hosts' lead to 105-98.

Garrison Mathews' three 1:21 into the fourth quarter pushed the margin to double digits at 113-102. Back-to-back threes a short while later from Holiday and Mathews made it 123-108 and forced a timeout from Carlisle with 8:33 to play.

Hield -- who started the night 1-for-8 from 3-point range -- finally found his shooting stroke down the stretch. The Bahamian sharpshooter knocked down three 3-pointers in a 1:43 span to keep the Hawks from completely putting the game away.

Haliburton's three-point play cut the deficit to 132-122 with 4:23 remaining, but Indiana never managed to get back within single digits.

Hield finished the night with 16 points off the bench, going 4-for-12 from beyond the arc. Isaiah Jackson added 14 points on 7-of-10 shooting.

Nembhard tallied 12 points, Nesmith and Jalen Smith each scored 11, and McConnell chipped in 10 for Indiana, as the Pacers went 1-3 on their last multi-game road trip of the season.

John Collins had a team-high 21 points for Atlanta on 9-of-12 shooting. Murray (20 points and 12 assists) and Capela (17 points and 17 rebounds) each recorded double-doubles, while Bey tallied 18 points and six rebounds off the bench.

The Pacers will return to Indianapolis for their next three games and five of their last seven to close out the regular season. The Pacers host Dallas on Monday and continue their homestand with games against Milwaukee on Wednesday and Oklahoma City on Friday.

Nwora finished one point shy of his career high, which he set as a rookie with the Bucks in Chicago on May 16, 2021. His 33 points on Saturday were 13 more than his previous high since joining the Pacers via trade on Feb. 9.

Haliburton recorded his team-leading 32nd double-double of the season. Only Young (35) and Philadelphia's James Harden (33) have more double-doubles among NBA guards this season.

Hield re-took the lead for most 3-pointers made in the NBA this season after being passed by Warriors guard Klay Thompson last night. Hield now has made 271 threes this season while Thompson has 268. Both the Pacers and Warriors have seven games remaining. With a strong finish, Hield could reach 300 3-pointers, a milestone that only two players have ever achieved (Stephen Curry four times and Harden once).

Pacers starting center Myles Turner did not play on Saturday due to a sore lower back, creating an opportunity for young bigs Jackson and Smith. The duo combined for 25 points on 11-of-19 shooting and 12 rebounds.

12 of the Hawks' 15 3-pointers came from their bench. Mathews went 4-for-5 from beyond the arc, Bey was 3-for-7, Griffin was 3-for-6, and Holiday was 2-for-3.

"It's great playing with guards (like) Drew, T.J., Ty obviously -- when they're driving, they're all great passers. So when you make a cut, they're going to find you. If you're open, you're going to get the ball. That's the great thing about being on this team." -Nwora on how his teammates set him up for success

"Since he's gotten here, he's been unbelievable. He's a great teammate, great kid and special scorer." -McConnell on Nwora's performance

"I think I'm getting a lot more comfortable with it and the more I do it, I think I'll keep improving on it, getting better." -Nwora on getting opportunities to play in the pick-and-roll

"We gave up well over 30 a quarter. Not good enough, obviously. I think not having Myles out there is a factor, but it's not an excuse. We've got to find a way to be better than this." -Carlisle on the defensive struggles

"Our young players that are getting an opportunity to start...it's important for these guys to understand the responsibility that comes with a starting player on an NBA team. It's got to be about doing your job within the system, doing your job defensively and doing your job offensively, and having trust in your teammates...This week has been a great opportunity for these guys to experience stuff that they need to experience." -Carlisle on giving young players like Mathurin, Nembhard, and Jackson starting opportunities in recent weeks

"When we talked to Buddy about going from starter to coming off the bench, he was good with it...The last couple of games, his approach, his attitude, his vibe with the team and all that kind of stuff was terrific. And that's what we need. As we build a roster and a rotation that can be a contending-type rotation, everybody's heart has to be in the right place, their spirit has to be in the right place." -Carlisle on Hield agreeing to move from the starting lineup for the past two games

"It's obviously different, experimenting with different lineups that we haven't been with all year. But that's no excuse for not giving any effort. Our effort was not good tonight and it showed...effort is a non-negotiable." -McConnell on if playing with new lineups has impacted the team's performance

Nwora made history with 25 points in the second quarter. The previous high by a Pacer since quarter stats were tracked in 1996-97 belonged to Mike Dunleavy, who scored 24 points in the third quarter of a win over Denver at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Nov. 9, 2010.

After a four-game road trip, the Pacers will return to Gainbridge Fieldhouse to host Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks on Monday, March 27 at 7:00 PM ET. Find Tickets >>