A smell, mass exodus of fans and the unknown: Inside the Pacers' 40-point loss in Toronto delayed by a speaker fire

Pacers acting head coach Lloyd Pierce: "Fifteen years for me (in the NBA), probably the most bizarre situation that we’ve been in for a game.”

The game was delayed 68 minutes due to a fire in an overhead speaker. (Photo: BSI)

The Pacers were in the middle of a blowout loss when acting head coach Lloyd Pierce (and others) began smelling something strange early in the second quarter. About five minutes before play was suspended at 8:22 p.m. ET, he even discussed it with head official Zach Zarba. …