In Game 3 thriller, Pacers blow 19-point lead before edging Bucks in OT

INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Pacers blew a 19-point lead and allowed the Milwaukee Bucks to force overtime, but All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton’s floater with 1.4 seconds left gave them a 121-118 win at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference playoff series.

The Pacers take a 2-1 lead over the Bucks with Game 4 coming Sunday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

With the game tied at 118 with 6.7 seconds to go in overtime following a game-tying 3-pointer by Milwaukee’s Khris Middleton, Haliburton took the inbounds pass, got downhill to the foul line, pulled up and hit a one-handed floater and drew a foul. He hit the free throw to give the Pacers a 3-point lead and Middleton missed a 3-pointer to allow the Pacers to survive.

‘I just knew I was shooting the ball’ Haliburton said of his game-winning play. ‘I told everybody to just give me the ball, let’s go win the game.’

Here are four observations:

Tyrese Haliburton posts triple-double, hits game-winning floater

Tyrese Haliburton’s first playoff series hasn’t been easy as the Bucks have focused their defense on stopping him and his jump shot hasn’t been doing him many favors.

But on Friday he battled through everything. He kept moving the ball trying to make the right play. He shot the shots that were available to him. He even crashed the glass harder than he usually does. And then when the game was on the line, he hit the shot that won it.

Haliburton finished 8 of 22 from the field, 1 of 12 from 3-point range with 18 points, but dished out 16 assists and grabbed 10 rebounds, including five on the offensive end.

Khris Middleton brings Bucks all the way back

Middleton’s sprained right ankle kept him out of practice on Thursday and he wasn’t even cleared to go by the time Doc Rivers spoke in his pre-game press conference. But once he was good to go, he was at his best.

Middleton scored 42 points on 16-of-29 shooting, including 4-of-9 from 3-point range. He forced overtime almost all by himself scoring the Bucks’ last five points, including a sidewinding 3-pointer with 1.4 seconds to go that tied the game at 111 to send it to overtime. He hit another three with 6.7 seconds left that tied the game before Haliburton’s game-winning floater.

Myles Turner remains key to offense

The Pacers have two All-Stars that their offense largely revolves around. Haliburton is the mastermind and orchestrator of their uptempo transition game and two-time All-NBA forward Pascal Siakam is their go-to guy when things break down and they need someone to somehow get a bucket.

But it can be easily argued that their success or failure in this series rides largely on the shoulder of center Myles Turner, the longest tenured member of the roster.

As Haliburton’s pick-and-roll partner, Turner can be the beneficiary when Haliburton is double teamed on ball screens and Turner gets free space to roll behind blitzes. When the Bucks tag him off those rolls, that can leave Siakam or others open and sometimes can give him the opportunity to create. When Turner can score at all three levels and pass, that largely leaves defenses in scrambled positions and makes it easier for everyone else to operate.

Just as he was in Game 2, Turner gave the Pacers what they needed offensively in Game 3, with mid-range shooting, outside shooting, points at the rim and sharp passing. He scored 29 points on 10 of 21 shooting including 4-of-10 from 3-point range.

Obi Toppin shows off mid-range in efficient shooting night

Obi Toppin shot 70.6% from 2-point range this season largely because most of his 2-pointers were layups and dunks. According to Basketball Reference, 54% of his total field goal attempts came within 10 feet of the rim and 43.7% of his attempts were 3s, which left about 3% from between 10 feet and the 3-point line.

But Toppin showed on Friday that he does in fact have an in-between game to go with his high-flying athleticism and skilled rim finishes as well as his outside touch. In the first half he hit his first five shots, which included a one-handed floater from 14 1/2 feet and a pull-up jumper from 17 feet as well as a layup, a dunk and a 3 from the corner. Toppin had 14 points in the first half on 6 of 8 shooting including 2 of 3 from 3-point range.