Pascal Siakam's Game Winner Gives Pacers 103-101 Win Over Bulls

(INDIANAPOLIS, IN.) – Pascal Siakam’s game winning shot gives the Indiana Pacers (4-16) their first winning streak of the season in 103-101 win over the Chicago Bulls (9-10) on Saturday night.

1. First Quarter

With Andrew Nembhard returning from his one-game absence to the starting lineup, Rick Carlisle moved Ben Sheppard to the bench. Indiana’s starters against Chicago were Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, Jarace Walker, Pascal Siakam, and Jay Huff.  Indiana’s offense was entirely Huff for the first four minutes and forty-five seconds because he was on fire. He drilled four three-pointers and had a putback off a Siakam missed three. Huff was outscoring the Bulls 14-9 during that stretch until Nembhard became the first Pacer other than their starting center to go ahead 16-9. Chicago would come back and take a four-point lead with 2:30 left in the quarter after an 8-0. Indiana would get a three-pointer from Mathurin in the final seconds to go into the second quarter trailing 27-26. Huff’s 14 points were the most by any player in the quarter followed by Josh Giddey with 10 points and Bennedict Mathurin with 8 points.

2. Second Quarter

Coming into tonight, Chicago was surrendering 124 points per game and Indiana was displaying why that’s the case by starting the second quarter with a 12-0 run to go from trailing by one to leading by eleven points after two foul shots from Isiaah Jackson. Chicago would answer with a 16-3 run to go in front by two points when Ayo Dosunmu connected on a three with 6:08 left in the first half. The Pacers would take the lead back by scoring five consecutive points. Indiana would not go on a major run in the final 5:30, but the Pacers were able to methodically extend their lead to nine points and go into halftime leading 61-54. Siakam nearly replicated what Huff did in the first quarter, but he only recorded 12 points in the second period (most by any player). Chicago’s leading scorer in the second quarter was Tre Jones with 7 points. The leading scorers at halftime were Huff (14), Siakam (12), Giddey (12), Mathurin (11), and Nikola Vucevic (10).  

3. Third Quarter

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The third quarter was a carbon copy of how things went in the first numbers from a statistical perspective. Rick Carlisle was forced to call an early timeout after Chicago scored five points in the first ninety seconds with two putrid offensive possessions. The Bulls would tie the game a couple of times and then the Pacers went on a 9-2 run to go back on top by a touchdown following a three-point play from Nembhard. Indiana could not extend its lead in the final 5:46 of the quarter but went into the fourth quarter leading 86-80. The Pacers only had five players score in the quarter with Isaiah Jackson and Andrew Nembhard scoring 8 points each. Chicago’s leading scorer in the quarter was Ayo Dosunmu with 7 points. What kept Chicago from outscoring Indiana by more than a point was the fact that the Bulls went 1/5 at the foul line.

4. Fourth Quarter

After having minimal issues scoring the basketball in the first three quarters, Indiana’s offensive was hapless. The Pacers started the final quarter of play by making one of their first eleven shots, allowing the Bulls to go on a 13-2 run in over a six-minute span. What Chicago changed defensively was cutting off the driving lanes and letting Indiana settle for a bunch of three-point shots. The second basket for the Pacers came with five minutes left in the game when Mathurin converted a pullup jumper. That sparked some momentum in the Pacers offense because they could not be stopped in the next three minutes. After struggling so mightily, the Pacers would take a 98-97 lead after a T.J. McConnell pullup with 2:19 left in the contest. Both teams were struggling in the final minutes because it was a second night of a back-to-back for both squads. Chicago would tie the game with 7.5 seconds left on a Tre Mann layup because of some masterful ball handling and eye manipulation. Rick Carlisle called a timeout and drew up a play for Pascal Siakam and he brought the ball up the floor and got to his spot on the right elbow and knocked down the 14-foot field goal to win it for the Indiana Pacers 103-101.

5. Top Performers

Pascal Siakam (24p, 9r, 4a, 2s, 2b), Bennedict Mathurin (19p, 6r, 3a, 2s), Isaiah Jackson (14p, 11r, 2b), Jay Huff (14p, 8r, 4b), and Andrew Nembhard (14p, 6a). For Chicago, Josh Giddey (17p, 11r, 7a), Tre Jones (17p), Nikola Vucevic (16p, 8r, 6a), Ayo Dosunmu (15p, 4r, 4a), and Kevin Huerter (15p, 3r). For tonight’s full box score, click here.

6. Notes

• Indiana has won back-to-back games for the first time this season
• Indiana improves to 2-2 on the second night of a back-to-back
• Indiana is now 4-6 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse
• Indiana is now 2-7 in clutch games this season
• Indiana has held its opponent to 101 points or less in three straight games for the first time since 2021
• Bennedict Mathurin recorded a season high 5 turnovers
• Isaiah Jackson recorded his 4th double-double of the season
• Isaiah Jackson recorded his 5th game with 10+ rebounds
• Jay Huff’s 14 points are a career high for points in a quarter
• Jay Huff’s 4 threes tie a season high
• Jay Huff’s 4 blocks tied a season high
• Jay Huff has blocked a shot in 14 consecutive games
• Jay Huff has blocked multiple shots in 6 consecutive games
• Josh Giddey recorded his 13th double-double of the season
• Matas Buzelis grabbed 10+ rebounds for the 2nd time this season
• Matas Buzelis tied his season high for blocks in a game with 3
• Pascal Siakam has scored 20+ points in 13 games this season
• Pascal Siakam recorded his 2nd game of the season with 2+ blocks
• T.J. McConnell’s streak of 5 consecutive games scoring 10+ points was snapped
• T.J. McConnell’s 3 steals tied a season-high

7. Next Up

The Indiana Pacers will play the third game of their four-game homestand on Monday night when the Cleveland Cavaliers make their first trip to Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Cleveland won the first meeting 120-109 on February 21 behind Donovan Mitchell’s 32 points and three other Cavs scoring at least 20 points. Pregame coverage will start at 6:30pm with Pat Boylan and then he will turn the mic over to Mark Boyle and Eddie Gill at 7pm for play-by-play coverage on 93.5/107.5 The Fan.