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Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers were smothered by the New Orleans Pelicans right off the bat on Friday and eventually lost 129-102. Brandon Ingram’s 19-point first-quarter explosion was the catalyst of the Pelicans’ spectacular 48-point output in just 12 minutes. It was all the cushion New Orleans needed to cruise to the victory.
The Pacers starters were so bad that no one could score more than 13 points. Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner led the starting unit with 12 points apiece, while Haliburton was held scoreless. It was the first time the All-Star guard had zero buckets since 2021.
After the loss, basketball fans on X (formerly Twitter) pounced on Tyrese Haliburton:
“MINUS 40 IS WILD!!!
Tyrese Haliburton finished 0-for-7, including 0-6 from deep. He added three rebounds and three assists in what had to be his worst performance this season. The Indiana Pacers were outscored by a mind-boggling 40 points when he was on the floor. Pascal Siakam was the worst on the team with -43.
The second quarter was when the Pacers were most competitive but it didn’t last long as the Pelicans just could not be stopped. Indiana leads the NBA in offensive rating this season but Friday night, it was New Orleans who put on an electrifying show on offense.
The Pelicans hit 55.8% of their shots and nailed 46.9% of their 3-pointers. Zion Williamson had an off night finishing with eight points on 3-for-6 shooting but he had seven assists. They did not need him to light up the scoreboard as Brandon Ingram took care of that. The lanky forward had 34 points, hitting 13 of his 21 attempts.
Trey Murphy III also sizzled to back up Ingram. Murphy came off the bench to score 28 points, which were highlighted by 6-for-12 shooting from deep. Jonas Valanciunas and CJ McCollum also did their part to complete their dominance over the visitors.
Herb Jones has to be given credit for his defense on Tyrese Haliburton who is the engine that drives the Pacers’ offense. With the defensive ace hounding Haliburton, Indiana’s usually humming offense stagnated. Jones only had six points but his defense was a game-changer for New Orleans.
Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers need to bounce back
After Friday night’s humbling at the hands of the New Orleans Pelicans, the Indiana Pacers have to regroup quickly. They need to have a short memory and get ready for the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday in Texas. Tyrese Haliburton has to lead his team to a much better performance versus Victor Wembanyama’s team.
After the loss to the Pelicans, the Pacers dropped to 34-27 for eighth in the Eastern Conference. Like every team with playoff aspirations, the immediate goal is to avoid the complications of the play-in tournament. Indiana aims to chase down the Orlando Magic (34-26) for the sixth spot and outright postseason berth. Haliburton and his teammates need to bounce back to achieve that goal.
