DeMar DeRozan's 46 points too much for Indiana Pacers in overtime loss to Chicago Bulls
The Indiana Pacers returned home on Wednesday night after playing five of their first six games in March away from Indianapolis. They were hosting the Chicago Bulls, a division foe who beat the Pacers in Indy earlier this season.
Chicago entered Wednesday losers of two-straight games, but they have been playing well in general since the All-Star break. Indiana, meanwhile, is 6-4 since that same break but came into the day winners of two in a row.
The action got going quickly as Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard scored just five seconds into the game. But Indiana was sloppy on their opening possessions, hitting two of their first five shots and tossing away two turnovers. They were down 9-4 early and took a timeout less than three minutes into the game.
Indiana continued to struggle to knock down shots for the next few possessions, but they defended well enough to keep the score close. They missed their first five three-point shots, all of which were wide open, yet they only trailed 16-8.
Finally, the blue and gold got the lid off the basket and hit consecutive threes near the middle of the quarter. It helped trim the advantage down to 20-16. It was just the jolt the Pacers needed, especially after making a few substitutions.
Chicago's edge hovered around that four mark for the final minutes of the first period, and the visitors were ahead 30-28 when the frame ended. Jalen Smith led the Pacers with seven points, but Indiana needed to up their defensive level.
The second frame opened with good play from the hosts, who tied the game at 34 in less than two minutes. They were playing disruptive defense and attacking the rim, a successful blend. T.J. McConnell was giving the Pacers a significant boost.
Indiana's surge continued as they went on a 15-5 run in total to begin the second period. That extended their lead to eight, which prompted a timeout from the Bulls. McConnell, Pascal Siakam, and Jarace Walker were all playing well for the blue and gold.
With the Pacers having found a rhythm, they cruised for much of the second quarter. Their tempo looked better than it did in the first quarter, and they were able to generate good shots on almost every possession. Despite not shooting the best percentage, Indiana was ahead by nine with two minutes to go in the first half.
The final moments of the half were controlled by Chicago, which spoiled a good second period for the Pacers. Alex Caruso hit a three-point shot just before the quarter buzzer, and the Pacers were ahead 62-58 at halftime. Myles Turner led the way with 10 points for the blue and gold at the time.
The second half began with good play from Chicago's starters, who pushed the Bulls ahead 68-66 after under three minutes of third quarter play. They were scoring on almost every possession — the Pacers needed to clean up their defense.
A tied score flashed a few more times as the quarter reached its midpoint, but the Pacers started to flail around that time. Their deficit reached five with 5:42 left in the period. Chicago was grabbing some momentum.
On the Bulls next possession, they scored again to take a seven point lead at 80-73, and Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle took a timeout. His team was playing poorly in the third frame and needed to reset and get back on track.
Out of the stoppage, the two teams traded buckets for a few minutes. That favored the Bulls since they already held the lead. Indiana just couldn't string together enough stops to get back into the game after their great second quarter.
Chicago's lead reached 10 with just under two minutes to go in the third frame. They were playing much better than the hosts and getting whatever shot they wanted. It was ugly for the Pacers.
At the end of three quarters, Indiana was behind 93-85. They looked slow and ineffective and needed some juice. It was tough for the blue and gold to generate good shots, and they weren't stringing together stops. They were 6/29 from deep and were led by 15 points from Turner.
The final frame opened with better play from the blue and gold, and they were able to cut the Bulls lead down to two in less than 100 seconds. They needed that surge, but there was still a ton of work to do.
Indiana scored on their next two possessions, and they were back in the lead just 2:16 into the fourth period at 96-94. They needed a good run of play and got it. Chicago took a timeout to take the crowd out of the game.
The Bulls brought many starters back around that time. They had been the better team with their starters on the floor for much of the game, so the next few minutes were going to be a vital span. Indiana needed to keep up before they made substitutions.
Aaron Nesmith and Tyrese Haliburton re-entered the game with about 7.5 minutes to go, and the score was tied at 101. The final stretch was going to decide the game and determine if Indiana's win streak was going to stay alive.
With 5:09 to go, the Bulls took a timeout trailing 104-103. Both rosters were struggling to score in the middle of the fourth quarter, and they both needed a stoppage just to get a breather. It looked like a game that was going to come down to the wire.
Two minutes later, it was Chicago who led by one, and there was a big defensive foul being reviewed against Nesmith. He and DeMar DeRozan, who had 32 points at the time, got tied up. It was overturned and ruled an offensive foul, and the Pacers got possession of the ball. They needed to take advantage of the reversed call.
They weren't able to, though, and with two minutes to go the Bulls were ahead by three at 110-107. Indiana needed a great close to the game if they were going to pull out a win.
Turner stepped up. He hit a pair of threes on consecutive possessions — the first one knotted up the score and the second one put Indiana up by three with under 60 seconds to go. Gainbridge Fieldhouse erupted. The Pacers had a late lead.
DeRozan scored again on the next possession for the Bulls, so the Pacers had the ball with 23.5 to go in the game and up by one. They took a timeout with 14 on the shot clock as they tried to put the game away.
They weren't able to score, but Siakam raced back in transition and blocked a Coby White layup with mere seconds to go. Nesmith was fouled a few seconds later and hit both free throws to give the Pacers a three-point lead with 5.5 to go.
Indiana fouled on purpose so Chicago couldn't attempt a three-point shot. but they botched the rebound on the second free throw, which was missed. The Bulls had another chance down by two points with 2.4 seconds to go. DeRozan, of course, took advantage and sent the game to overtime at 117.
The extra period started off with a DeRozan bucket, a bad sign for the Pacers. They needed to slow him down if they were going to win. He was up to 39 points at the time.
Turner got Indiana on the board in overtime with another three. His outside shots were massive for the blue and gold in crunch time, and the Pacers were back in the lead. This game was going to be a tough one to close out, though.
The teams traded baskets for a few minutes, but Nikola Vucevic ended that streak. He hit a jumper that gave the Bulls a four-point lead late in the overtime period. The Pacers needed to score.
Haliburton did on the next possession, but his team still needed a stop. They weren't able to get it. Chicago led by four with 44 seconds to go, and the Pacers took a timeout. They were running out of time.
Siakam scored quickly to give the Pacers a chance, but their defense needed to step up in a way it hadn't throughout the extra time. And they failed again, letting in another Bulls layup with under 30 seconds left.
Haliburton knocked down two foul shots for the Pacers, but it was going to be a free throw game the rest of the way. Indiana needed a steal or some good luck at the charity stripe if they were going to have a chance to win.
They got it, and Haliburton had a three-point attempt to tie the game at the buzzer. He missed it, though, and Indiana fell 132-129. They had chances to win late but couldn't get it done.
The Pacers fell to 37-30 with the loss. DeRozan finished with 46 points for the Bulls while Turner led Indiana with 27.
The Pacers next play on Saturday when they host the Brooklyn Nets.
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