PACERS DEFEAT ROCKETS
Pascal Siakam fuels third-quarter charge to lead Pacers past Rockets
Feb 7, 2024, 9:51 am
Rockets fall to Pacers, 132-129. Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images.
Pascal Siakam relied on his scoring punch, T.J. McConnell added the energy and the Indiana Pacers defense turned up the pressure in the second half Tuesday.
It was exactly what they needed.
Siakam finished with 29 points and teamed up with McConnell to score 17 during a third-quarter rally that propelled the Pacers past the Houston Rockets 132-129.
“The third quarter, we just kind of sat down, get down into the bodies and pressured more,” Siakam said. “That's how we've got to be, that's how we've got to play defense to continue to evolve, which I think is an area that can make us a special team.”
The defense has been Indiana's biggest weakness most of this season. But with the addition of Siakam through a mid-January trade with Toronto and the savviness of McConnell, things could be changing.
McConnell had 17 points and four assists as the Pacers allowed 54 second-half points just two days after holding their first opponent to less than 100.
The result: Indiana won its second straight overall and for the ninth time in the series.
But Houston sure made it tough.
Jalen Green had 30 points in the Rockets' second straight loss while Dillon Brooks added 23. Rookie Amen Thompson finished with 13 points, 13 rebounds and six assists as Houston played without starting guard Fred VanVleet, who coach Ime Udoka said isn't likely to return until closer to the All-Star break.
And yet, Houston still seemed to be in control when it extended a 75-68 halftime lead to 85-75 early in the third. Then, over the final 9:53 of the quarter, everything changed.
“We defended well for two quarters, second and fourth,” Udoka said. “We didn't feel like we had to take any contested shots tonight, just continuing to penetrate and kick, make easy reads. We didn't really duplicate it as well in the second half.”
The difference showed. While Indiana's defense allowed just 14 points during that long third-quarter stretch, Siakam and McConnell fueled the comeback. Indiana used that closing 31-17 flurry to take a 106-99 lead.
Houston never fully recovered as Indiana quickly extended the margin to 14 early in the fourth and the Rockets couldn't get closer than seven until Alperen Sengun's tip-in made it 129-124 with 1:13 to go.
Green's 3 with 46 seconds to play cut the deficit to 130-127.
But two-time All-Star Tyrese Haliburton answered with a layup to seal the victory despite continuing to play on a minutes restriction as he continues to rehab from a left hamstring injury. He had 18 points, seven assists and one giant smile.
“There's a little bit of service after the game, but in the game, I feel good after a little while so that's a positive,” he said. “To be able to start games, finish games and play close to my traditional minutes, I'm just happy to be more healthy.”
UP NEXT
Rockets: Continue their four-game road trip Friday night at Toronto.
Pacers: Host Golden State on Thursday night.
Most Popular
SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome
Listen Live
Stephen Curry closed his eyes and rested his tired head on Jimmy Butler's right shoulder as the superstars shared another postgame moment.
This time, with Butler injured and wearing street clothes — a full-length fur coat at that.
“Well first, he had a fantastic coat on,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “I thought he was going to be way too hot in that thing.”
Sidelined for Game 3 of Golden State's first-round playoff series against the Houston Rockets, Butler had a front-row seat to watch his teammate take over Saturday night in a 104-93 win that gave the Warriors a 2-1 lead.
Curry scored 36 points with five 3-pointers and had nine assists and seven rebounds in nearly 41 minutes. He had been determined to do more if Butler couldn't play after injuring his pelvis and suffering a deep gluteal muscle contusion in a hard fall during Game 2.
Butler and Curry can compare notes on their injured backsides, given that Curry has dealt with a bruised tailbone multiple times. For now, Curry appreciates the support, whether Butler is in uniform or not.
And the fur Butler was wearing?
“I almost didn't need a hot pack on the sideline sitting next to him. There was plenty of heat emanating from him,” Curry said before adding, “He's a savvy veteran, high-IQ guy, he's got a presence whether he's active or not where his voice matters, and we needed him to lift everybody up on the bench and give us that energy. His presence matched the fit for sure.”
Kerr wasn't ready to guess whether Butler will be able to play in Game 4 on Monday night.
“He’s literally day-to-day. We have tomorrow off. It will be helpful for him to have another day, and then it’s a night game,” Kerr said. “So he gets a few extra hours. So we’ll see. I have no idea right now if he’s going to play.”
Butler had been set to go through his pregame routine, which he does out of sight on the team's practice court and not the playing floor before games at Chase Center. He had an MRI exam Thursday in the Bay Area a day after he was hurt in Houston.
“We had to have Jimmy’s back while he was out,” said Gary Payton II, who scored 11 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter. “Hopefully we get Jimmy back for Game 4 and get back to our regularly scheduled program.”
Jonathan Kuminga, who didn't play for three straight games before rejoining the rotation in Game 2 when Butler got hurt, was in the starting lineup for his fourth career playoff start.
Butler went down hard when he was fouled by Amen Thompson late in the first quarter and then missed the rest of the Warriors’ 109-94 Game 2 loss on Wednesday night.
Butler tried to secure a rebound when Thompson undercut him and sent the Warriors star’s feet high into the air so that he came down straight onto his tailbone. Both players thudded to the floor and Butler grimaced in pain, grabbing at his backside. He stayed in briefly to shoot two free throws before going to the locker room.
Kerr appreciated Butler's insight on the bench.
“Jimmy is so smart. He reminds me so much of Andre Iguodala," Kerr said. “Incredible basketball IQ and then the ability to communicate what he’s seeing to his teammates on the bench. I thought Jimmy was important for us tonight in that regard. He was talking to guys throughout the game, and giving them advice, giving some help, and that was big.”
In the Game 1 win against the Rockets, Butler had 25 points on 10-for-19 shooting, seven rebounds, six assists and five steals in 42 minutes. The Warriors are 26-9 since Butler made his debut at Chicago on Feb. 8, including 23-8 in the regular season, a play-in tournament win over Memphis and the three games against Houston.
“We know they are still dangerous without Butler, so that doesn’t change anything as far as that," Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. “We didn’t make them pay, especially with the paint shots.”