Field Level Media
25 Jan 2023, 17:05 GMT+10
Fresh off snapping a seven-game losing streak, the Indiana Pacers hit the road on Wednesday to face the Orlando Magic in the second leg of a back-to-back set.
Indiana rallied from a 21-point deficit and outscored the visiting Chicago Bulls 36-23 in the fourth quarter en route to a 116-110 win onTuesday.
The victory was the Pacers' first since Jan. 8, as well as their first since point guard Tyrese Haliburton sustained elbow and knee injuries on Jan. 11 in the first game of their skid.
"I feel like a lot of teams in our position would have probably put their head down and said, 'Here we go again,'" Pacers guard T.J. McConnell said following a 20-point, 10-assist performance on Tuesday. "But we've been saying it all year: We don't quit. This team has a ton of fight."
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle made recent tweaks to the lineup, including moving McConnell into the starting lineup to fill Haliburton's spot at point guard. McConnell recorded a triple-double of 18 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds in his first start on Saturday against the Phoenix Suns.
After three games scoring below his season average of 17.5 points while in the starting lineup, rookie Bennedict Mathurin has come off the bench in each of the past three games. He matched Myles Turner with a team-high 26 points on Tuesday, 15 of which came in the fourth quarter.
"Everybody's got to be ready to play, everybody's got to be ready to step up," Mathurin told Bally Sports Indiana in his postgame interview. "Tyrese is a big part of this team, (but) we have to be ready to play and go on the court with confidence."
Just as Indiana aims to flip from a losing skid to a winning streak, the Magic are seeking their first back-to-back wins in over a month.
Orlando dominated the NBA-leading Boston Celtics on Monday, 113-98, behind a balanced offensive effort and stifling defensive performance.
The Magic held Boston to 36-of-83 shooting from the floor (43.4 percent) and forced 18 turnovers. Gary Harris, Cole Anthony and Jonathan Isaac were responsible for six of those turnovers with two steals each.
Isaac -- playing in his first game since sustaining his second serious knee injury in seven months at the NBA bubble in August 2020 -- also scored 10 points in less than 10 minutes off the bench.
"That kind of first wind got to me. That last minute I could barely talk I was breathing so hard," Isaac said of reacclimating. "But the second rotation in the second half, that four minutes, I started to just relax and just feel good."
Anthony scored 18 points in a reserve role, and Orlando improved to 10-4 this season when he has scored 13 or more points.
"Just getting into a rhythm," Anthony said. "A lot of credit to my teammates, man. Honestly, I had some pretty easy buckets just because they're doing a great job of finding me. I'm just trying to run the floor for them."
Franz Wagner was among the Orlando players distributing the ball against the Celtics, doling out six assists to go with seven rebounds and 15 points.
Rookie Paolo Banchero is the Magic's leading scorer at 20.7 points per game, while Franz Wagner -- who is averaging 20.4 points per game -- has scored 20-plus points in seven of his past 10 appearances.
--Field Level Media
Get a daily dose of Sports Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Sports Sun.
More InformationAlex Newhook, J.T. Compher, Evan Rodrigues and Matt Nieto had goals, Logan O'Connor added two assists, and the Colorado Avalanche ...
Joel Embiid had 47 points and 18 rebounds, including a clutch 3-pointer with 29.2 seconds remaining, to lift the host ...
Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner agreed on a two-year, $60 million contract extension, ESPN reported on Saturday. Per CAA Sports, ...
Maybe you missed the window to take advantage of the teeter totter Bengals-Chiefs line this week or can't get a ...
San Francisco 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw was fined $10,609 by the NFL for his unnecessary roughness penalty on Dallas Cowboys ...
Brooklyn Nets guard Ben Simmons has been ruled out for Saturday's game against the visiting New York Knicks due to ...
Maybe you missed the window to take advantage of the teeter totter Bengals-Chiefs line this week or can't get a ...
San Francisco 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw was fined $10,609 by the NFL for his unnecessary roughness penalty on Dallas Cowboys ...
Brock Purdy emerged out of nowhere to become just the third rookie quarterback in NFL history to win his first ...
The Cincinnati Bengals elevated quarterback Jake Browning and offensive tackle Isaiah Prince to the active roster for Sunday's AFC Championship ...
The Baltimore Ravens interviewed Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken this week about their vacant OC position, NFL Network reported Saturday. ...
Washington [US], January 28 (ANI): The award-winning screenwriter of "Remember the Titans," Gregory Allen Howard, died in Miami, Florida, following ...