- Simba French
- 13 hrs ago
- 0
Bahamian professional basketball player Chavano ‘Buddy’ Hield had a tough shooting night on Saturday and his team, the Indiana Pacers, fell late to the Los Angeles Lakers 123-109 in the first-ever National Basketball Association’s (NBA) In-Season Tournament (IST) championship game.
Playing at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, the Grand Bahamian finished the night connecting on just three of his 11 field goals attempts with two of those made shots coming from deep.
The loss means that the Pacers’ players who are on standard contract, like Hield, will receive $200,000 each while the Lakers players, who are also on standard contract, will receive $500,000 each for the win. The stats and outcome from the games don’t count toward the regular season stats and standings.
It was not just a tough shooting night for the Bahamian but also for the Pacers as they hit just 36.8 percent of their shots from the field while the Lakers shot a blistering 53.4 percent. They were also outrebounded by the Lakers, 55-32.
Hield had a better first half in terms of shooting. He went 2-for-5 for five points in the first half. He made the first bucket of the game to put the Pacers up 3-0 at the 11:38 mark of the first quarter. The Lakers took a 7-5 lead on an Anthony Davis slam dunk. That was the only lead change of the game as the Lakers took over and kept the Pacers at arm’s length. Hield made his second field goal of the first half on a 13-foot jump shot with 1:56 left in the first quarter. The Lakers led 30-27 at that point. The scoreline was 34-29 in favor of the Lakers at the end of the first quarter.
There was better play from the Pacers in the second quarter, but the Lakers’ defense was active. Both teams scored 31 points in the second quarter and the Lakers led 65-60 at the end of the first half.
The Pacers had a tough time keeping up with the Lakers in the second half. They got as close as three points in the fourth quarter but the Lakers went on a 21-8 run midway through the fourth to take a commanding 115-99 lead with 3:11 remaining. The Pacers never got to within single digits the rest of the way.
Leading the way for the Pacers was Tyrese Haliburton who finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds. The Lakers were led by Davis who had 41 points and 20 rebounds.
This tournament has earned the Pacers some respect around the league, especially after eliminating the Milwaukee Bucks and the Boston Celtics in the knockout round.
Hield and the Pacers (12-8) will return to regular season action today with a game against the Detroit Pistons (2-20) on the road at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan. The game gets underway at 7 p.m.