The Pacers jumped out to a 15-3 lead thanks in part to the Pistons missing nine of their first ten shots, but free throws and extra opportunities allowed Detroit to keep the score from ballooning any further. Detroit’s bench would turn the game into their favor from there, eventually springing them into the lead in the third quarter.
The Indiana starters would control the game all night, except for the open to the third, in which the Pistons outhustled Indiana 13-4 out of the half to take a 63-62 lead. At that point, Paul George came up big for the Pacers, taking control of the game, having a hand in the game’s next nine points, setting the Pacers up to finish the third quarter on a 28-10 run.