In important game vs Chicago Bulls, Indiana Pacers offense falls apart

The Pacers scored just 99 points on Wednesday

Mar 27, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Dalen Terry (25) defends Indiana Pacers / David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

CHICAGO — The Indiana Pacers streak of reaching 100 points in a game is over. After obtaining triple digits in each of their first 73 games this season, the blue and gold only put 99 on the scoreboard Wednesday night in Chicago. They fell by 26 to the Bulls.

Indiana shot 13/42 from deep and didn't have their usual burst, a tricky combo to overcome. They weren't able to generate good looks in the paint or from deep — leaving their only path to victory on the defensive end. Instead, they conceded 125 points, a death sentence that also prevented transition play from being a weapon.

"We couldn't maintain a compete level that was high enough," Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said after the game.

His team struggled offensively all night. They only scored more than 25 points in one quarter — it was in the third period, when they dropped 31. That was also Indiana's best defensive level, the two ends of the court were intertwined. But it wasn't sustained for the blue and gold, and they fell back to earth in the fourth frame.

"I don't care about 100 points. That doesn't matter. What matters is our spirit and just learning how you have to compete against these teams that are desperate," Carlisle added. He didn't like his team's compete level for much of the game.

That bled into their offense. Indiana didn't look like themselves. They weren't able to get into the paint, they didn't shoot it well, and their movements were irregular. For one of the league's best offenses, it was an unusual night.

The highlight number is the total points, but the Pacers only mustered 38 points in the paint, their fourth-fewest of the season. Ironically, Chicago held them under 40 points in the paint once earlier this season as well.

Indiana is 2-5 in the ongoing campaign when they score fewer than 41 points around the basket. In both of their wins, they were terrific as a jump shooting team and canned several threes. Wednesday night, they were 13/42 (31%) from deep. Essentially, the blue and gold couldn't get going from anywhere.

"We just weren't able to make shots I feel like... didn't play a lot in transition," Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton said. He thought the Bulls dictated the pace of the game.

The blue and gold use the phrase "paint to great" to describe how they want to play offensively. They try to attack the basket, then operate their offense from there. Sometimes, it comes via a shot at the rim. Sometimes, it's a pass. Often, it's just about getting a defense in rotation.

For a team that tries to move the ball and play randomly, being kept out of the paint is a difficult challenge to overcome. Wednesday night was proof. The Bulls prevented the Pacers from playing their style, and they controlled much of the game.

Chicago, according to TeamRankings, leads the league with the fewest points allowed in the paint per game. It's part of their identity, and their success doing so is a big factor in their ability to beat Indiana — the Bulls won the season series 3-1.

"It's the way they play their concept," Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard said of the Bulls' defense and its ability to prevent paint points. He went on to describe how high Chicago keeps their centers when defending pick and rolls and how the Bulls keep a nearby defender in the gap.

He also gave credit to the team's strong on-ball defenders on the perimeter. Haliburton agreed, citing Ayo Dosunmu and Alex Caruso by name. "They just do a good job of rotating on the back side," Haliburton mentioned of Chicago's defense. He believes that the Pacers have to make shots to defeat their division foe.

They didn't do that on Wednesday. Struggling to score around the rim and being off from deep is an impossible combination to overcome, and the Pacers were suffocated. It led to their worst offensive night of the year, and it put a damper on an otherwise encouraging road trip.

During a game like that, the only way to pull out a win is to defend well. The blue and gold didn't do that — conceding 125 points with too many lackadaisical moments. Stops could have been a catalyst for good transition play. Instead, the Pacers watched the Bulls shoot 50% from the field.

"Get more stops. It's hard to keep a team out of the paint in transition," Carlisle said when asked how his team could have entered the paint more often. "Paint points have been hard to come by against them all year long."

Carlisle's point is backed by the fact that his team's best stretch of play all night came in the third quarter when their defense tightened up. But it wasn't enough for the Pacers to get it done. Their miserable offensive night led to a loss in Chicago, and it all came down to being held out of the paint.

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