The Pacers are ready for their Parisian getaway! Before crossing the Atlantic, Rick Carlisle’s men were full of confidence by relying on their collective to dispose of the Sixers in a match that was not so simple, despite numerous major injuries on the Philly side.
The equation was also much more complicated than expected, Nick Nurse’s men having done better than resist, sticking to the locals’ coattails until half-time despite good relays from the Sheppard-Nembhard-Nesmith trio to support Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam. The gap thus climbed to +11 (56-45), until the awakening of Tyrese Maxey (28 points), author of a 3-pointer and three free throws, and the 11-2 passed by the Sixers before the break, with once again Tyrese Maxey to bring his team to -2 with a last basket at the break buzzer (61-59).
On their momentum, Tyrese Maxey, Ricky Council IV and Andre Drummond maintained the pressure after returning from the locker room (61-66) until Myles Turner signaled the end of recess with a furious dunk. Everything happened very quickly afterwards, between Myles Turner’s two 3-pointers and Ben Sheppard’s 2+1 which fueled a stunning 16-3 (79-71). The hardest part was almost done, especially as the Pacers seemed unleashed, like the dunks of Jarace Walker, Pascal Siakam and Thomas Bryant to end the third act (89-80).
The Siakam-Bryant tandem then relegated Philadelphia 16 lengths (101-85), but the Sixers knew how to react to stay in the game, almost until the end. There was a 10-0 marked by 3-pointers from Ricky Council IV and Pete Nance to return to -6. Tyrese Maxey’s 3-pointer and Ricky Council IV’s dunk kept Philly in the game (106-100) before seeing Indiana deliver a fatal blow to snatch the victory, with a new basket from Myles Turner and a 3-pointer by Ben Sheppard, all in the space of 45 seconds (112-100). This time the Pacers can rejoice with a 15th home success this season which allows them to continue to put pressure on the Top 4 in the East (115-102).
WHAT TO REMEMBER
– A collective demonstration. Beyond the fact that the Pacers have regained real momentum in 2025 with an eighth success (all acquired by more than ten points difference) in nine games, this is also measured in this match by the number of players involved in Rick Carlisle’s collective, with 8 players at 8 points or more, all without the usual scorers Tyrese Haliburton or Bennedict Mathurin (9 and 8 points) having to work. Everyone is involved and this necessarily bodes well for the upcoming double confrontation against Spurs in Paris.
-– Indiana welcomes the return of Aaron Nesmith. Returning from a serious ankle sprain, Aaron Nesmith played his first game in Indiana after starting again in Detroit in the previous game. The Pacers public thus regained all its enthusiasm on both sides of the floor, for an overall contribution to be saluted in just 11 minutes of play: 12 points at 4/5 shooting and 2 rebounds. The kind of energizer that will do good on the bench, as was the case last night with his counterparts TJ McConnell and Thomas Bryant, not forgetting Ben Sheppard.
– Guerschon Yabusele hit in the knee. The Sixers infirmary is once again full since in addition to the George-Embiid pair, many important elements of Nick Nurse’s group were missing, whether Kyle Lowry (hip) or the two Martins, Caleb ( hip) and KJ (foot), without forgetting the Frenchman Guerschon Yabusele. Absent for the first time this season, the former Celtic was uncertain and was ultimately judged unfit, due to knee pain.
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
