Pacers fall to Raptors
By TYLER SMITH
ISL Editor
(Photo by Pacers Sports and Entertainment)
INDIANAPOLIS — Coming into Monday’s game, the Pacers had won 13 of their previous 16 games. The Toronto Raptors had lost 10 of their previous 12. As they often do in sports, those streaks meant nothing in this game. The Raptors controlled the game throughout, on way to winning by a final score of 117-98 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
After trailing 39-26 early in the second quarter, the Pacers went on a nice run to cut the deficit to 58-54 at halftime. It was all Toronto in the second half, however, as the Raptors shot 12-of-23 from behind the arc on the night. Raptors guard Kyle Lowry had been struggling of late. He broke out of his slump in a big way, recording a triple-double with 20 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists.
With Toronto shooting lights out from the 3-point line, the Pacers needed to hold their own in that department to have a chance. Instead, they really struggled, shooting just 2-of-19.
“They’re a great 3-point shooting team, and they get to the foul line,” Coach Frank Vogel said. “We marched them to the foul line 33 times. They were too much for us.”
Asked if his team was a little complacent the last two games, Vogel responded: “I don’t think there’s anything complacent about this team. We’re fighting for our lives. We know every game makes a difference on whether or not we go to the playoffs. We just got outplayed.”
George Hill and Rodney Stuckey continued to play well in the Pacers loss. They combined for 43 points on 18-of-31 shooting. The rest of the Pacers combined to shoot just 20-for-57 (35%).
If you’re looking for positives from this one, look no further than the turnover numbers. The Pacers only committed four turnovers in the game, which tied a single-game franchise record.
With back-to-back home losses, the Pacers have now lost two consecutive games for the first time since mid-January. The long stretch of home games has concluded. Overall it was a very good stretch for the Pacers, but had a disappointing finish.
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