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Game Rewind: Pacers 106, Mavericks 93

Game Recap

Despite losing head coach Rick Carlisle to health and safety protocols, the Pacers (12-16) knocked off the Dallas Mavericks, 106-93, in front of a raucous crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The victory clinched Indiana's first three-game winning streak of the season.

Indiana brought a bit of everything to the matchup for acting head coach Lloyd Pierce. After ending the first quarter on 9-of-25 shooting, the squad turned it around in the second by finishing 12-of-22 with six 3-pointers. When Dallas threatened down the stretch, the Pacers' defense forced the Mavs' offense into a 4:30 scoring drought. Leading 98-93 with 2:33 left, Caris LeVert and Malcolm Brogdon both hit dagger threes to put the game away for good. LeVert finished with a team-high 26 points, six boards, five assists, and two steals in the win.

"I think, for us, we tried to do it for Rick (Carlisle) tonight," LeVert said postgame. "We know how much this game meant to him."

Three others finished in double figures for Indiana. Domantas Sabonis (24 points, 10 rebounds) and Myles Turner (17 points, 10 boards) both finished with double-doubles, and Brogdon finished with 12 and eight assists. The Blue & Gold also got big minutes from Kelan Martin and Oshae Brissett off the bench, finishing with +/- ratings of +14 and +12, respectively.

"I just thought our guys were locked in," Pierce said. "This could have gone in any way. These situations are always tricky. Someone's out — especially a head coach — you're playing at home against a team with a lot of emotion...I thought we just tried to be Indiana and play Indiana basketball."

Dallas (12-13) earned an early lead behind the hot hands of its 3-point threat, Kristaps Porzingis. The 7-3 power forward started 3-of-4 from the floor, including 2-of-3 from deep, to take a 10-4 lead at the 8:03 mark.

The Blue & Gold used a small 6-0 spree to knot things up at 10 after Chris Duarte sank a pair of free throws. Later, with 3:54 to play, Turner earned Indiana’s first lead of the game, 15-14, on a deep three from the top of the key.

However, the Mavs quickly regained a lead using an 8-2 rally. A baseline trey by Brogdon after three-straight offensive boards brought Indiana back to within two with 33.8 seconds left. Yet, the visitors kept a 26-22 advantage after one.

The visitors stretched their lead to eight before Indiana caught fire. The squad rattled off seven straight, including five quick ones from Brissett on consecutive possessions, to cut the lead to 30-29 with 10:00 to play.

Later, Brissett continued to provide the fireworks. After LeVert nailed a three to earn a 36-34 lead, the former Syracuse forward powered home a Karl Malone-esque, one-handed slam in transition to stretch the lead to four.

Then, consecutive triples by LeVert and Martin concluded a streak of nine straight makes as Indiana stretched its lead to 44-36 with 6:18 to play. The Mavs managed to cut the lead to four, but the Pacers went right back to work after a timeout.

Hustling for a putback dunk, Duarte earned a trip to the charity stripe for a pair of free throws. Then, Sabonis added five more to extend the Pacers’ lead to 51-42 with 3:34 to play.

The Pacers then went cold, tallying just two points in a 3:29 span. The Mavs threatened to take the lead into the half. However, Turner knocked in his second trey with 5.0 seconds left to give Indiana a 56-54 advantage at the break.

The Pacers methodically picked apart the Mavs’ defense in the early moments of the third. Three of the squad’s first four buckets of the frame carried an assist, including LeVert’s dish for a Sabonis layup that gave Indiana a 65-59 lead with 8:33 to play.

Over the next few minutes, the story remained the same. Indiana patiently found several buckets in the paint to maintain a steady lead over the midway mark of the third. Sabonis was the primary beneficiary, notching eight, including a pair of free throws at the 4:44 mark to grab a 73-67 lead.

However, Dallas quickly responded with a run of seven unanswered to earn a one-point edge with 3:27 left. Turner ended the spree with a massive driving dunk, pushing the Pacers back in front, 75-74.

The Mavs used another small spurt of 6-0 to regain a five-point edge. However, the Pacers quickly flipped the script to end the frame.

The Blue & Gold tallied seven straight – five from LeVert – over the final 1:04 to grab an 82-80 edge entering the fourth. LeVert’s spurt included an ice-cold three with 2.4 seconds left to excite the crowd.

The Pacers' frontcourt crashed the offensive boards to extend their lead early in the fourth. Brissett and Martin hustled for putbacks on consecutive possessions to give the Pacers an 87-80 lead with 10:11 remaining.

But Dallas came roaring back, responding with seven straight to knot the score at 87 on Doncic’s layup with 8:40 left.

Utilizing their tough defense, the Pacers clung to a slim lead. The squad held Dallas scoreless for a 4:30 span. Meanwhile, Brogdon muscled in two reverse layups to stretch Indiana’s lead to 94-89 at the 4:51 mark. LeVert added four more to give Indiana an eight-point edge.

Leading 98-93 with 2:33 to play, Brogdon and LeVert drilled back-to-back threes in 36 seconds to stretch the lead to double-digits. The buckets shut the door for good and capped another stellar performance from the Blue & Gold.

Indiana rounds out its six-game homestand with a tough matchup against Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors on Monday night.

Inside the Numbers

Indiana dished out 28 assists tonight while committing just 12 turnovers.

The Pacers won the rebounding battle, 43-38, while snagging 12 offensive boards.

Four Pacers finished with a +/- rating in double figures tonight: Sabonis (+23), LeVert (+16), Martin (+14), and Brissett (+12).

You Can Quote Me On That

"For me, I think he is not afraid of the moment. I think he's always looking for the moment. I thought he took one bad shot in the fourth quarter — about the three-minute mark — in, kind of, a way guys are looking for those big plays. You have to live with that. That shot led to the three at the end because he's not afraid of the moment, and it doesn't rattle him. Really, some guys have an 'it factor,' and I think he has a little bit of that. That shot was huge at the end." –Pierce on LeVert's play

"For someone who hasn't really been playing like that, to come in and have the impact he's had over the last couple games, it's extremely hard to do. I think that just speaks to who he is as a person, his energy level, and his ability to stay locked in." –LeVert on Brissett's play as of late

"It's great. I'’s big. We know Rick (Carlisle) wanted to be here. We know he really wanted to go against them and get this win. We're glad we got this for him." –Sabonis on the win tonight

Stat of the Night

The Pacers' defense limited Dallas to 13 points on 6-of-22 (27 percent) shooting in the fourth quarter.

Noteworthy

  • As of Friday night, Indiana holds claim to the longest winning streak in the Eastern Conference at three wins.
  • Indiana improves to an even 20-20 all-time against the Mavericks at home.
  • The Blue & Gold have won eight games this season by 10 points or more.

Up Next

The Pacers wrap up their six-game homestand on Monday, Dec. 13 at 7:00 PM ET, when they host Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Find Tickets »