Pacers Grab Road Win Over Rockets Behind Malcolm Brogdon’s Big Night
The Pacers (26-28) rebounded quickly from their loss on Tuesday night to beat the Rockets (14-41) 132-124 on Wednesday night.
The back-to-back on the road and playing without Myles Turner and Doug McDermott didn't matter as they jumped out to a lead of 20 points at halftime. While the final tally only has them winning by eight, the game was never in doubt.
Wednesday's win was their fourth out of their last five games and their fourth straight road win.
"This was a must-win game for us," Malcolm Brogdon told Bally Sports Indiana on the post-game. "We had a little bit of a let-up in that second half, but we finished the game."
Brogdon finished one assist shy of a triple-double, and the trio of Caris LeVert, Domantas Sabonis and Brogdon combined for 72 points on the night.
The Pacers' offense continues to roll as they are now averaging 126 points per game over their last five games. The win also improves them to 8-4 in back-to-backs.
"It's chemistry," Brogdon said of the offense. "It's guys learning how to play with each other, learning our strengths and weaknesses. When you add a huge play-maker and scorer like Caris LeVert and a great player in Caris LeVert, it's going to take some time to get used to his style of play, for him to get used to how we play and we're still trying to learn the system that coach is putting in and embrace that as well."
Over on the Rockets side, Christian Wood and Kelly Olynyk both had 25 point double-doubles, and John Wall racked up 31 points and dished out nine assists. The Rockets also led the offensive rebounding battle and had 15 turnovers to the Pacers' 18; as Brogdon alluded to, they let them get too close down the stretch.
"This is a team that has talent on it," Brogdon said of the Rockets. "John Wall, they've got a bunch of hungry young guys, and they play hard every night.
The Pacers resume action on Friday in Utah against the Jazz.
Related Pacers stories
- SLICK LEONARD DIES: Bobby "Slick'' Leonard was the Indiana Pacers and his attachment to the franchise as a coach and broadcaster last nearly five decades. CLICK HERE
- TRADE SAVED LeVERT: When the Indiana Pacers traded for Caris LaVert, no one knew at the time that the moved might have saved his life. Here's our Sports Illustrated cover story. CLICK HERE
