Siakam and Haliburton close out the Pelicans, the latest example of their growing synergy

Their partnership is evolving each day. Haliburton scored or assisted on the Pacers' final 11 points in a win to close out a four-game homestand with three wins.

Pacers forward Pascal Siakam played his 19th game with the team on Wednesday and had his hands in every part of their 123-114 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.

As Tyrese Haliburton’s shooting remained off, Siakam and others helped shoulder the load. He finished with a team-high 24 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and two blocks. And they got contributions from all over — including 16 points from Bennedict Mathurin, 14 from Myles Turner and the bench outscored the Pelicans’ 44-24.

The Pacers (34-26) led the entire way and by as many as 20 points, but the Pelicans threatened late. They trimmed the deficit to six several times, then finally to three with 3:15 to go.

Haliburton and the Pacers didn’t panic, instead having an answer like they had all night. In crunch time, where Haliburton’s ranks as one of the NBA’s most productive players, he came up big when Pacers needed him most. He didn’t let his missed shots derail him and negatively impact his play.

With the keys to the franchise, Haliburton took control and buried a key step-back 3-pointer over Brandon Ingram with three minutes left in the game. Then, he assisted on their final four field goals, including three layups in a row by Siakam, to hold off the Pelicans for the victory.

The Pelicans (35-25) had won nine of their last 12 games entering Wednesday’s game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Not only had they played the night before in New York, but they were also delayed in arriving to Indianapolis overnight due to mechanical issues with their plane. Getting to the hotel around 5:30 a.m. directly impacted their sleep and game-night routine.

And they were dragging early in the game.

It was a sluggish start, but Williamson & Co. finally got their engines fired up for the second quarter. By then, though, they were already in a double-digit hole.