Game Rewind: Pacers 107, 76ers 113 (Preseason)

Back in action at Bankers Life Fieldhouse for the first time in nine months, the Pacers led by as many as 17 points but ultimately fell to the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night in their final preseason game, 113-107.

Three Pacers starters topped 20 points despite sitting out the entire fourth quarter. Domantas Sabonis led the way with 26 points on 10-for-16 shooting and 11 rebounds, while Malcolm Brogdon added 21 points, six rebounds, and four assists.

Two-time All-Star Victor Oladipo had his best showing of the preseason, tallying 20 points, two rebounds, two assists, and two steals in 20 minutes. Oladipo went 7-for-14 from the field and 4-for-9 from 3-point range.

"I just got to be assertive, be aggressive," Oladipo said. "When I do that everything else will take care of itself."

Philadelphia jumped out to an early 11-6 lead behind three buckets from Dwight Howard, but Indiana responded with an 11-0 run to surge in front.

Oladipo led Indiana's offensive charge in the first quarter, scoring 10 points in the first eight minutes with a pair of 3-pointers and a couple of layups in transition.

The two teams traded the lead six times in the opening frame. Indiana had a two-point lead following rookie Cassius Stanley's dunk in the final minute, but Tony Bradley's layup on the other end made it a 28-28 tie after one.

The 76ers opened the second quarter with a 12-4 run. Nate Bjorkgren then subbed his starting five back in and they reeled off a 16-2 run. Sabonis scored eight points over that span and the Blue & Gold held Philadelphia to just one field goal over a 5:26 span.

"I thought that first group shared the ball nicely," Bjorkgren said. "They were making the right plays and I thought they were really playing for each other. That's what I was looking for."

Indiana led by as many as nine points before halftime and took a 59-51 advantage into the break.

Oladipo picked up where he left off in the third quarter, drilling a 3-pointer on the Pacers' opening possession and then dishing out two assists as the Pacers opened the half with an 11-2 run.

"I think this is the best shape we've seen Vic in since his injury," Sabonis said. "He's positive, he's coming out, he's practicing hard. I think it's showing in the game. He has his speed back. It's fun to play with him, especially for me in our two-man game."

That gave the Blue & Gold a 17-point lead, but the 76ers chipped away at that margin over the remainder of the third quarter. Eight unanswered points gave the visitors an 81-80 lead late in the frame. Brogdon's 3-pointer with 10.1 seconds remaining put Indiana back in front, but Mike Scott's three bounced in at the buzzer on the other end to give Philadelphia an 84-83 lead entering the fourth quarter.

Just as he did in their two previous preseason games in Cleveland, Bjorkgren turned to his bench to close out the game.

The Sixers opened the fourth quarter with a 12-3 run to extend their lead to 10 points. Indiana's reserves slowly clawed their way back, cutting the deficit to four on Kelan Martin's layup with just over three minutes to play and again after Stanley's three-point play with 1:45 remaining.

But that would be the closest Indiana would get. Isaiah Joe's jumper with 1:07 remaining pushed the lead back to six and rookie Tyrese Maxey provided the proverbial dagger with a step-back jumper with 39 seconds to play.

Stanley had 12 points on 5-of-11 shooting and seven rebounds off the bench in the loss.

Reserve guard Shake Milton led Philadelphia with 15 points and five assists on Friday. Howard added 14 points in 16 minutes on 7-of-7 shooting, while Furkan Korkmaz also tallied 14.

The Pacers will now turn their focus to next week's season opener. Indiana will host the New York Knicks at The Fieldhouse on Wednesday night to tip off the 2020-21 campaign.

The Pacers went 11-for-42 from 3-point range on Friday and attempted 40 or more 3-point shots in each of their three preseason contests. Indiana has only attempted 40 3-pointers in three regular season games in franchise history.

Sabonis recorded his second double-double of the preseason. He set the franchise record with 50 double-doubles last season.

Indiana outscored the Sixers 54-48 in the paint.

The Pacers had just 14 turnovers, but also only 19 assists on 39 field goals.

Philadelphia outrebounded the Pacers 48-45 overall, but the Blue & Gold had a 20-9 advantage on the offseason end.

"I thought he attacked the paint nicely...He ran the floor well, attacked when he needed to, shot the three when he needed to. I thought he made the right decisions." -Bjorkgren on Oladipo

"Vic I thought was really, really good. I thought definitely his best game. His pace, his conditioning, everything. I thought Victor looked really, really good." -Brogdon on Oladipo

"We're aggressive out there with active hands. We're charting those deflections...a lot of those deflections can create our offense, too. I'm pleased with that (and) I'm pleased with our defensive activity." -Bjorkgren on Indiana forcing 27 turnovers

"It's been a minute since we've actually played together...But we've had that chemistry since he was a rookie in OKC and they used to put us on the second unit together. Our chemistry ain't going nowhere." -Oladipo on playing with Sabonis

"We're three guys who can impact the game in multiple ways. I think that's what you saw tonight and we were able to get it going scoring the ball." -Brogdon on he, Oladipo, and Sabonis all topping 20 points

The Pacers forced Philadelphia into 27 turnovers, which they converted into 35 points on the other end.