Pacers’ Pascal Siakam, Rick Carlisle vocal on ’embarrassing’ Game 1 vs. Bucks

“The first half was embarrassing. No excuses, we simply have got to come out better. It was ugly and we all own it… [The Bucks] looked like the experienced team, and we looked inexperienced, Carlisle told reporters during the postgame press conference.

The Pacers barely outscored Lillard in the first half, during which they only produced 42 points to Dame’s 35. Lillard  shot 11/19 from the field and drained a total of six 3-pointers before halftime, as Indiana’s defensive woes continue in the postseason. Defense has been a major Achilles heel of Indiana this season. The Pacers finished the regular season just 27th in the league with 120.3 points allowed per game. Despite topping the league in scoring offense with 123.1 points per outing, the Pacers were just ninth overall with a +2.8 average scoring margin.

The Pacers did show more life in the second half versus the Bucks, especially in the third quarter where they outscored Milwaukee by 15 points, but that was clearly not enough to overcome the huge 27-point halftime deficit.

Pascal Siakam had a standout performance for the Pacers and was one of the few bright spots on the team in Game 1, as he scored 36 points on 15/25 shooting from the floor with 13 rebounds, two assists, a steal, and a pair of blocks in 40 minutes, but he felt Indiana, as a team, did not show up with the kind of hunger needed to survive in the playoffs.

“We didn’t have the intensity we were supposed to have, but they made tough shots. We weren’t us, we didn’t stay composed,” Siakam said after the game, per Jeremiah Johnson.

The hope for the Pacers is that Milwaukee will cool off in Game 2 while they come up with a better start. Indiana fell way behind early in the series opener that they spent a lot of time taking lower-percentage long-range shots in a vain attempt to erase a big Bucks lead.

Siakam also gave the Bucks props for playing the way they did coming right out of the gate.

“They came out and sent a message and did what they’re supposed to do, Siakam said (h/t Pat Boylan). They’re the 3 we’re the 6, they won at home, now it’s time for us to respond.”

The Pacers could certainly use a strong bounce-back performance from Tyrese Haliburton, who coughed up just nine points on 4/7 shooting from the field in Game 1. Haliburton added seven rebounds and eight assists, but the Pacers are going to need him to be more aggressive in hunting for his shots in the series.

Game 2 of this Pacers-Bucks series will be on Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time.