T.J.

McConnell

Again, McConnell gave the Pacers good minutes off the bench, but he did most of his damage during the first half. The veteran point guard shot 4-of-6 from the field in the first half, scoring 10 points to help the Pacers push their lead out to as much as 20. New York’s bench was superior after halftime, helping the visitors rally for the win despite Jalen Brunson sitting for a significant stretch due to foul trouble. After outscoring their Knicks counterparts by 14 and 10 points in the first two games, the Pacers were only a plus-5 in bench points in Game 3. McConnell and the other reserves will aim to improve in Tuesday’s Game 4.

While Turner had a decent night in the points and blocked shot categories, the rebounding left something to be desired. Aaron Nesmith (7/7/1 with one three-pointer) and T.J. McConnell (12/6/7) both recorded more rebounds than the Pacers’ starting center, and Indiana gave up 18 offensive boards on the night. That doesn’t all fall on Turner’s shoulders, but Indiana needs him to be more impactful on the glass, especially with Evan Mobley returning in the Cavaliers’ lineup. He’ll look to rebound when the Pacers host Game 4 on Sunday.

McConnell was a bright spot off the bench, electrifying the Gainbridge Fieldhouse crowd as he took over in the second half with his scoring and facilitating. He finished the game with more points than the rest of the Pacers’ bench combined. Expect McConnell to play an important role in the Pacers’ second-round series against the first-seeded Cavaliers.

Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam are out again, but Nembhard, Nesmith and Turner will be back for the regular season finale. This won’t impact the standings, so they may not play many minutes. Toppin and Walker started on Friday and will remain in the opening lineup against Cleveland. Thomas Bryant and T.J. McConnell will come off the bench for this game, but they should still play significant roles.

Absent from the initial injury report for Sunday’s game, Haliburton will not play in the Pacers’ regular-season finale. T.J. McConnell and Obi Toppin will likely remain in the starting lineup, as Indiana is locked into the fourth seed in the East.

Nesmith and Nembhard have been removed from the injury report after sitting out Friday’s loss to the Magic. The Pacers are locked into the four-seed in the East regardless of Sunday’s result, so the starters may not play much. T.J. McConnell and Bennedict Mathurin will return to the bench but not lack opportunities against the Cavaliers.

Indiana will be without all five of their usual starters for this game, which will allow all five of the aforementioned players to slide into the starting unit. Orlando is also playing without four of their five usual starters, so this will be a matchup of reserves from both teams.

Haliburton hasn’t missed time since late March while Siakam has dealt with an elbow injury this month. T.J. McConnell and Jarace Walker are likely fill-ins for Friday with several starters out of commission.

Following Monday’s overtime victory, Pacers coach Rick Carlisle gave McConnell credit for willing the team to the extra period. The veteran point guard took on a more prominent role within the rotation, as Tyrese Haliburton was out with an injury and Andrew Nembhard was ejected during the third quarter. McConnell’s point total did not increase substantially, but he did dish out 13 assists. T.J. will have added value if Haliburton has to miss more time.

Nembhard, the lone Pacers starter available for Monday’s game, was ejected when he got into an altercation with Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert. After the Pacers guard inadvertently elbowed Mike Conley on a drive to the basket, Gobert gave him a forearm to the upper body. Nembhard threw the ball at Gobert, and both players were ejected. He finished with 12 points, two rebounds, three assists and one three-pointer in 19 minutes. T.J. McConnell will play more minutes since Tyrese Haliburton is also out.