Pacers take commanding 3-1 series lead with 126-113 Game 4 win over Bucks

INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Pacers could never quite shake the Milwaukee Bucks Sunday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, but Tyrese Haliburton’s team eventually outlasted the bruised and short-handed Bucks 126-113 to take a commanding 3-1 series lead.

The Eastern Conference matchup heads back to Milwaukee on Tuesday night for Game 5 with the Bucks facing a first-round elimination for the second straight season.

“We have a lot of guys who have obviously been here before, been in these situations, been deep in the playoffs – we all know what we have to do,” Bucks center Brook Lopez said. “We all knew what our role is, what our job is, how to approach these things. The young guys, they’re smart. We have to set a good example for them. They know what to do. ‘Dre’s (Andre Jackson Jr.) been far in the (NCAA) tournament. AJ (Green’s) smart. We’re all capable of understanding the situation and responding the right way.”

Lopez led the Bucks with 27 points on 12-of-18 shooting and pulled down nine rebounds. Khris Middleton had his third double-double of the series with 25 points and 10 rebounds. Nine other Bucks scored, but none reached double figures.

Middleton appeared to tweak his left ankle in the game and exited briefly, and Bucks head coach Doc Rivers said Pat Beverley hurt his ribs after a first quarter fall. For his part, though, Beverley insisted “nothing’s wrong with me” after the game. Pat Connaughton also was hit in the face at one point, but all finished the game.

“Our guys were playing their hearts out,” Rivers said. “They really were. I love that our team, no matter what anyone thought, they believed we could win this game. And it shows a lot about this basketball team. And what I loved about it the most is after the game they were disappointed they didn’t win the game. This is a great group to coach, I’m telling you. I know we have a lot of stuff going on, you know. Just clutter. Injuries. But man, I’m loving this team every second that I’m with ’em. And today is another example of that.”

Haliburton had 24 points while Myles Turner had 29 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots. Andrew Nembhard (15), Aaron Nesmith (13), Pascal Siakam (13) and Obi Toppin (13) also reached double figures.

Pacers three-point shooting keys victory

Tyrese Haliburton’s first-half buzzer-beating three-point attempt rattled in and out to the dismay of the home crowd, but it was one of just 10 misses from beyond the arc for Indiana in a hot-shooting first half.

Indiana was a sparkling 12 for 22 (54.5%) from behind the three-point line in the first half – and hovered around 60% for most of the opening 24 minutes – to take a 67-64 lead on the Bucks. Seven different Pacers hit triples, with center Myles Turner going 3 of 4.