By Kyle Grand, Pacers.com
The Pacers suffered their first loss of the preseason, falling to the Chicago Bulls, 121-105, in the United Center.
Indiana got off to a fast start, building a 13-4 lead with 7:40 left in the first period of play. The Bulls rallied though, and a mere minute later, the Pacers led by just one, 13-12.
From there, Pacers newcomer Al Jefferson provided a boost off the bench and behind his six first quarter points, Indiana led 30-26 heading into the second.
The second quarter was a tight affair, with the teams trading baskets for the majority of the period. Isaiah Canaan gave the Bulls a spark late in the quarter. He nailed a triple to give Chicago a one-point lead. On the Bulls’ next possession, he was fouled while shooting a 3-pointer and converted all three free throws, and the held Bulls a 50-46 advantage with 3:08 left in the first half.
Inspired by Canaan’s play, Chicago dominated the rest of the quarter, and at halftime, the Pacers were behind, 64-49.
To start the third, like in the first quarter, the Pacers looked great. A 13-4 run cut the Bulls’s lead to six with 8:13 remaining in the period.
The Pacers would continue to close in on Chicago, as turnovers proved to be a huge problem for the home team. They gave the ball away 10 times in the first nine minutes of the third, and with under three minutes to play, Indiana trailed by only one, 76-75. But the Bulls controlled the rest of the quarter, going on a 13-1 run to end the period with an 88-77 lead.
The final quarter was more of the same for Indiana. The Bulls increased their lead to 15 in the early going of the fourth and never looked back. The Pacers never got within single digits the rest of the quarter, on the way to their first preseason loss.
Jeff Teague led the way for Indiana, finishing with 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting. Glenn Robinson III added 17 points and six rebounds. Rookie Georges Niang scored 16 points, all of which came in the fourth quarter.
Chicago was paced by Dwyane Wade’s 22 points and eight assists. Taj Gibson shot a perfect 9-of-9 from the floor, on his way to a 20-point night.
Inside the Numbers
Chicago’s Isaiah Canaan had the game’s best +/- rating with a +40.
The Bulls had 42 free-throw attempts to the Pacers’ 23.
Al Jefferson (13 points) scored in double-digits for the third straight game.
Noteworthy
Paul George did not play today (rest)
Myles Turner made his preseason debut after missing the first two games due to a concussion. He played 15 minutes and finished with six points and four rebounds
Jeff Teague finished the game with 21 points, the most he’s scored in a Pacers uniform
Up Next
The Pacers head to Evansville, Indiana, for a showdown with the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night at 7:30 PM ET.
