The Indiana Pacers couldn’t suppress the combination of Luka Dončić and Kristaps Porziņģis who ended their three-game losing streak in a 124-112 win over the Pacers.
Jeremy Lamb’s return on Wednesday night wasn’t vital enough after scoring 10 points to help the Pacers get a win at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
A season high was recorded for the Mavericks with 32 assists on 51 field goals as the Mavericks shot 52.6 percent from the field.
In 19 minutes off the bench, Lamb scored 10 points on 4-for-8 shooting on the field and returned after coming of a torn ACL.
Dončić was a threat on the offensive end drawing the Pacers defense and finding open shooters like Tim Hardaway Jr. and Trey Burke who combined for 41 points. With Dončić third triple-double of the season, his 13 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists made him the second fastest player to reach 30 triple-doubles. Among that list is Earvin “Magic Johnson (190 games) and Oscar Robertson (75 games).
Porziņģis was the game high scorer who had 27 points and 13 rebounds exploiting the mismatches thrown at him on the block.
As Myles Turner remained out with an alvusion fracture in his right hand, the Pacers allowed the Mavericks to gain 49 rebounds and outscore them 68 points in the paint. Domantas Sabonis was held under six rebounds in the first quarter but finished the night with 25 points and 10 rebounds making it the longest double-double streak in Pacers history (14 games).
The defense was lacking and Brogdon alluded to the adjustments in the first-half which led to the Mavericks taking advantage at the rim.
“I think that zone slowed us down a little bit, and then we let that creep into our defense,” Brogdon told Fox Sports Indiana.
Indiana held a 94-93 lead with the first basket in the fourth quarter, but Dallas responded with eight straight points and used a
24-9 run to build a 14-point lead with 6:11 left on the clock.
Click on the next page for DAL vs. IND post-game highlights.