Haliburton shines, Pacers finish 3-1 on home-stand
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Pacers were looking to come out of the All-Star break swinging with four straight games on their home court. Mission accomplished, as the blue and gold put together a 3-1 home-stand with the only loss coming at the hands of the Denver Nuggets on a back-to-back. On Wednesday night, the Pacers took care of the Toronto Raptors behind a huge night from Tyrese Haliburton, winning by a final score of 111-91 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
“We knew this was going to be a grind of a game,” said Pacers Head Coach Rick Carlisle. “Tyrese was the difference. That got the building going.”
Haliburton on looking more for his shot:
Since their 10-15 start to the season, the Pacers have put together the 7th best offensive rating and 9th best defensive rating in the NBA. Since the calendar flipped to 2025, they’ve been even better with the 5th best offensive rating, and 8th best defensive rating. In the month of January, this was a top-five defense in the league. Put it all together, and you’ve got a team that is 23-9 since December 13th.
While the improved defense has clearly been a huge story-line for this team, it’s still a group that goes as Haliburton goes. The Pacers are now 19-2 this season when Haliburton scores 20+ points. They are 7-1 when he scores 30+. They are 15-4 when he has 10+ assists. And they’re 15-3 when he has a double-double. If Zero is attacking and the defense maintains their solid run, this could once again be a dangerous team come playoff time.
With 25 games to play, the Pacers will continue their quest for a top-4 seed in the Eastern Conference. The Milwaukee Bucks and Detroit Pistons are right on their heels, and the Pacers will play the Bucks twice next week. Unfortunately for the Pacers, each game will occur on the second night of a back-to-back. On the bright side, Milwaukee has a tougher overall schedule on paper the rest of the way. The Pistons continue to surge and took care of the Jaylen Brown-less Boston Celtics on Wednesday night. A Pacers/Pistons first round match-up would feed families.
After a 10-2 month of January, the Pacers are now 7-4 in February with one game to play this month. Here is the full remaining schedule for Indiana:
Since their 10-15 start to the season, the Pacers have put together the 7th best offensive rating and 9th best defensive rating in the NBA. Since the calendar flipped to 2025, they’ve been even better with the 5th best offensive rating, and 8th best defensive rating. In the month of January, this was a top-five defense in the league. Put it all together, and you’ve got a team that is 23-9 since December 13th.
While the improved defense has clearly been a huge story-line for this team, it’s still a group that goes as Haliburton goes. The Pacers are now 19-2 this season when Haliburton scores 20+ points. They are 7-1 when he scores 30+. They are 15-4 when he has 10+ assists. And they’re 15-3 when he has a double-double. If Zero is attacking and the defense maintains their solid run, this could once again be a dangerous team come playoff time.
“I think he took his licks at the beginning of the year,” said teammate Myles Turner. “He took on a lot of unnecessary pressure. And he weathered the storm. When he gets hot, it’s a fun night. He’s starting to find his stride.”
With 25 games to play, the Pacers will continue their quest for a top-4 seed in the Eastern Conference. The Milwaukee Bucks and Detroit Pistons are right on their heels, and the Pacers will play the Bucks twice next week. Unfortunately for the Pacers, each game will occur on the second night of a back-to-back. On the bright side, Milwaukee has a tougher overall schedule on paper the rest of the way. The Pistons continue to surge and took care of the Jaylen Brown-less Boston Celtics on Wednesday night. A Pacers/Pistons first round match-up would feed families.
After a 10-2 month of January, the Pacers are now 7-4 in February with one game to play this month. Here is the full remaining schedule for Indiana:
