Siakam's First-Quarter Eruption Lifts Indiana Past New Orleans, 123-120
Pascal Siakam dropped 30 points and Andrew Nembhard dished 9 assists as Indiana escaped New Orleans with a 123-120 win on October 22. The Pacers built a commanding first-quarter cushion and then held on for dear life as the Pelicans made it a genuine fight to the final buzzer.
The story of the night was Indiana's first-quarter takeover. New Orleans actually jumped out front early — Yves Missi dunked it home on the game's first possession, Zion Williamson converted a driving layup-plus-foul to push it to 10-6, and Jeremiah Fears buried a 27-footer off a Dejounte Murray feed to make it 7-4. But the Pacers answered with a 17-4 run that effectively broke the quarter open. Tyrese Haliburton hit a 25-foot three, Andrew Nembhard converted a layup and a free throw in the same possession, and Obi Toppin drilled a 23-footer off a Haliburton assist to push it to 23-14. New Orleans clawed back to within eight late in the period, but Siakam took over the final two minutes — a tip shot, then a 23-foot jumper off a Nembhard assist, then a 26-foot three-pointer with 16.5 seconds left — to send Indiana into the second quarter up 38-31. That closing burst was as clean a quarter-ending statement as you'll see.
New Orleans didn't fold. Dejounte Murray finished with 23 points, 7 assists, and 3 blocks, and Zion Williamson added 22 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 steals. The Pelicans chipped away through the middle quarters, and with Indiana's win probability sitting at 82% in the fourth quarter, Murray hit a 13-foot pullup jumper off a Yves Missi assist at the 6:44 mark that swung the home win probability from 82% all the way down to 65% — a 16-point swing that turned a comfortable lead into a genuine sweat. New Orleans had life, and it looked like they intended to use it.
In the end, Indiana's depth was the difference. Nembhard contributed 18 points and 9 assists — a quietly enormous game — while Toppin added 20 points off what appears to have been a reserve role. Haliburton ran the show with 23 points and 12 assists, keeping the offense organized even when New Orleans was pressing. The Pacers held on, 123-120, in a game that was far messier than the first-quarter margin suggested it would be. Indiana looks like a team with multiple ways to hurt you; New Orleans, for their part, looks like a team that won't let anyone breathe easy.