Game Rewind
Domantas Sabonis scored a career high 24 points, but it wasn't enough to slow down the Bucks and their star Giannis Antetokounmpo, as the Pacers fell, 119-98, in Milwaukee.
Indiana kept things close in the first half and only trailed by 10 when the third quarter began, but the second half is where the home team really established itself.
By the 4:57 mark, Milwaukee led by 18, 82-64. Indiana cut the deficit to 13 with 2:05 to go in quarter, but Milwaukee ended the quarter with a quick 6-2 spurt to lead 93-76 heading into the final period.
"We let a lot of things slip in that third quarter," Pacers center Myles Turner said. "We stopped scoring. They had a lot of back cuts. There were a lot of random things we could talk about. It just got away from us again."
The fourth saw Milwaukee grow its lead to more than 20 with just under eight minutes to play in the contest, and it was then clear the outcome was no longer in doubt.
Sabonis shot 10-of-13 from the floor en route to the best scoring night of his young career, but the team as a whole continued to struggle with the absence of Victor Oladipo.
"We can't really worry about that," Pacers head coach Nate McMillan said of not having Oladipo. "Injuries are a part of it, and we definitely miss players when they are out. But, we are capable of getting it done. We have to believe in ourselves and go out and do the things we need to do to give ourselves a chance to win."
The Pacers got off to a slow start in the first quarter. Behind seven quick points from Khris Middleton, the Bucks took a 16-7 lead with 6:49 left in the opening period.
Milwaukee pushed its lead to 24-9, but Indiana's offense eventually came to life. The visitors made seven of their final nine shots of the quarter, but heading into Milwaukee maintained a 34-26 lead.
In the second, Milwaukee again built a double-digit lead, a 14-point advantage with a little more than seven minutes to play this, but again Indiana responded.
Keyed by 12 second quarter points from Sabonis, the Pacers got the deficit down to five with under two minutes to go in the half. But the home team ended the second quarter with five straight points to take a 10-point lead in the locker room.
In addition to Sabonis' 24 points, Lance Stephenson finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Darren Collison added 17 points.
For Milwaukee, Antetokounmpo scored 31 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Khris Middleton added 27 points and Malcolm Brogdon scored 15 off the bench.
Inside the Numbers
Milwaukee had nine more assists than Indiana, finishing with 33 compared to the Pacers' 24.
Cory Joseph tied his season high in rebounds with seven.
You Can Quote Me On That
"I think we're still pretty positive. We're going through a rough patch right now, but we've been through a losing streak before." - Pacers head coach Nate McMillan
"It was just lack of energy coming out. We just got to figure it out. Our last four or five games we just haven't figured it out." - Pacers forward Thaddeus Young
"We put a huge emphasis on coming out in the third quarter, beginning of the second half, and really trying to close it out early. I thought we did that well tonight." - Bucks forward Malcolm Brogdon
Stat of the Night
Domantas Sabonis finished with a career high 24 points. He shot 10-of-13 from the floor and 4-of-5 from the free-throw line. His previous scoring high was 22.
Noteworthy
- Lance Stephenson has now scored in double figures three out of his last four games.
- Milwaukee is 4-1 in its last five games against Indiana.
- Giannis Antetokounmpo registered his 18th double-double of the season.
Up Next
The Pacers return home for their fourth and final meeting of the regular season against the Chicago Bulls on Saturday, January 6 at 7:00 PM ET. Find Tickets »