Point God: Haliburton nets 20 assists, zero turnovers in Pacers’ win over Bulls

Myles Turner scored 24 points and Tyrese Haliburton delivered 21 points and 20 assists to lift the visiting Indiana Pacers to a 120-104 win against the Chicago Bulls on Thursday night (Friday, December 29, Manila time).

Buddy Hield added 19 points for the Pacers, while Jalen Smith (15), Bennedict Mathurin (15), and Aaron Nesmith (12) rounded out a balanced attack that helped Indiana pull away down the stretch after squandering a big lead.

Indiana led by 25 points in the third quarter, surging ahead by that many when Turner’s layup put the Pacers ahead 83-58 at the 6:43 mark.

Chicago responded by scoring 33 of the game’s next 40 points. Coby White drilled a long trey from the top of the key to give the Bulls a 91-90 advantage with 8:18 to play, delivering his first make from long range after 16 straight misses over the past three games.

White made two free throws moments later, but a quick 12-0 run from the Pacers put the visitors back in control. Indiana has won three of five.

Patrick Williams led the Bulls with 22 points, while DeMar DeRozan (21), White (16), Alex Caruso (15) and Ayo Dosunmu (15) followed.

Obi Toppin grabbed 11 rebounds for Indiana. Chicago’s Andre Drummond had 16 boards.

Caruso hit a jumper to draw the Bulls within 49-47 with 4:13 to go before halftime, but cold shooting doomed the Bulls for the rest of the quarter.

Indiana closed on a 14-5 run to take a 63-52 lead into intermission. Hield and Smith scored four points apiece during the spurt, while Haliburton continued to assert himself as a consistent distributor.

Haliburton, who has posted seven straight games with double-digit assists, had 11 helpers in the first half en route to a career high in assists. He had zero turnovers.

Smith (11 points) and Hield (10) scored in double figures in the first half as the Pacers shot 53.5 percent, including 11-for-23 from long range.

Chicago struggled to 42.6 percent shooting in the first half and was 4-for-13 from beyond the 3-point arc. Williams led all scorers with 14 points before the break. DeRozan was next on the Bulls with 10. – Rappler.com