What looked like a schedule loss turned into exactly that last night, as the Toronto Raptors — on the road on a back-to-back — couldn’t get over the hump against the Indiana Pacers, who’d been resting at home since Sunday. Credit to the Pacers, who played their game, withstood losing their best player to an awful injury, and didn’t crumble when the Raptors rallied late.
16 points in the first quarter? That’s gonna make it tough to win on the road, no matter what. The Pacers weren’t on fire either — they shot 11-for-29 in the first, compared to the Raptors’ 6-of-24 — but the real difference maker in this game showed itself early, and that was the game in the paint.