Pacers hold Lakers to 90 points to clinch first winning season since 2019-20

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Pacers engineered a dramatic turnaround from Sunday's loss in Los Angeles, beating the Lakers 109-90 in Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Friday night.

The Pacers improved to 42-33, clinching a winning record for the first time since 2019-20 and maintaining sixth place in the Eastern Conference. The Lakers fell to 41-33 after five straight wins.

Here are four observations.

After giving up 150 in LA, Pacers win with defense

The Pacers left their 150-146 loss to the Lakers in Los Angeles on Sunday mostly bothered by the 43-16 free throw disparity. They actually made more field goals (59) than the Lakers (50) so it didn't feel as much like a defensive meltdown as a 150-point game usually would.

Still, they saw on film too many occasions when they made life easy on the Lakers and they still gave up 70 points in the paint.

Friday's game marked an almost complete turnaround on the defensive end as the Pacers held the Lakers 60 points below Sunday's score. The Lakers never scored more than 25 points in a quarter. They shot 35 of 85 from the floor (41.2%) and made just 5 of 29 3-pointers for just 0.91 points per possession.

The Lakers scored 50 points in the paint and just four on second-chances, making just 2 of 9 field goal attempts after offensive rebounds.

"We made a few adjustments and had much greater edge," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "Much greater compete level. Determination. Level of guts, all that kind of stuff."

Aaron Nesmith plays LeBron James tough

Aaron Nesmith has drawn the primary assignment of guarding LeBron James in all three of the Pacers' games against the Lakers this year, including the In-Season Tournament final. Each time he's put forth a valiant effort to stop the NBA's all-time leading scorer and each time he's made progress with the assignment.

This time, Nesmith held James to 16 points on 6 of 12 shooting and he also made it difficult for James to get to the line. Last season, one of the biggest issues Nesmith had with taking on tough assignments was he would frequently get in foul trouble. On Friday, Nesmith didn't pick up his first foul until the 5:27 mark of the third quarter. He finished with just that one foul in 39:20, and James took just four free throws. He had 10 rebound and eight assists, but by LeBron's standards, that doesn't count as taking over a game.

"Sometimes you've gotta be aggressive," Nesmith said. "Sometimes you've gotta let him come down. It's just mixing up the coverages and not letting him see the same thing every single time. Just continuing to make him think the game as he comes off pick-and-rolls and when he's backing me down, giving him different looks as much as possible.

Nesmith was also effective on the offensive end, making 5 of 11 shots, including 2 of 7 3s, for 12 points. He also grabbed four rebounds went on the floor to grab a particularly impressive loose ball to gain a possession and free throws for the Pacers.

"Aaron's the best we got," Carlisle said. "He and (Andrew Nembhard) are the two best press-up guys and physical, individual defenders. We have other guys who are good too, but Aaron carries the flag when it comes to guarding guys like LeBron James. That body type, we have nobody else. It speaks to his maturity, it speaks to how he's adjusted his game to fit the game the way it's being officiated now. He puts his body in there. He shows his hands, and he makes it tough."

Tyrese Haliburton, Pascal Siakam made the plays the Pacers needed

All-Stars Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam have both had more efficient nights than they had on Friday, but the Pacers got the production on both ends that they needed from their top players.

Haliburton wasn't lights out, but seems to have made it all the way out of his 3-point shooting slump. He finished 7 of 15 from the floor, including 3 of 8 from 3-point range for 21 points. He also had eight assists, eight rebounds and two steals giving a solid defensive effort even in cases when he got switched onto LeBron James.

Siakam continues to be a go-to option in slow or physical games, of which this game qualified. Siakam scored 22 points on 8 of 16 shooting, and crucially, made 6 of 7 free throws. He also grabbed 11 rebounds and dished out six assists.

"I think for me, either way we want to play I'm able to do that," Siakam said. "If we want to play fast, I'm able to do that. If we want to slow down as well. For me, it's just continuing to pick my spots. I think the more we get into these games, the more that's going to be asked of me to get into those games. It's not always about scoring. Ty is so great about setting up everyone that I think for me, for him to know there's someone out there to do the same -- probably not as great as he does it -- but I'm able to do that and it's going to be hard for the defense."

T.J. McConnell keeps scoring

Veteran backup point guard T.J. McConnell has reached the point that he's become one of the Pacers' most consistent scorers, and on Friday he was again one of the Pacers' top offensive options. He scored 11 first-half points to lead the Pacers, which got him into double figures for the ninth straight game.

Trying to score on the Lakers means dealing with a lot of size, but the 6-1 McConnell simply found a way with his usual mid-range pull-ups. He finished 7 of 11 from the floor with 16 points. He also knocked in his only 3-pointer, showing a little more belief in that shot each game. He's never been one to take many, but the Pacers want him to shoot when he's wide open. Prior to the All-Star break, he made just 3 of 19 3-point attempts. Since the break, he's 11 of 18 from 3 (61.1%).

"I think he's just being really ultra-aggressive and playing with a lot of confidence, really trusting his jumper right now," Haliburton said. "I wouldn't say that he's ever trusted his jumper as an NBA player. I think that's really changing things for him. You guys see, you know him. He just plays with a lot of confidence and I think that really helps."

In the last nine games, McConnell has scored 127 total points. The only two bench players in the NBA who have scored more in their past nine games are Sacramento's Malik Monk with 137 and Milwaukee's Bobby Portis with 129, but both have played a lot more minutes than McConnell. Monk has played 247.5 minutes, Portis 234.7 and McConnell 177.1. So over the last nine games, McConnell has been one of the most efficient bench scorers in the NBA.

In that stretch, McConnell is shooting 53.3% from the field and he also has the second most assists among NBA bench players with 41. Future Hall-of-Famer Chris Paul is the only player with more in that stretch with 43.