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The Indiana Pacers will need a huge performance on their home court to assure the series stays alive in the NBA Playoffs against the Toronto Raptors. Join The Roar for live scores of Game 6 from 9:30am (AEST).
Indiana would score only nine points in the final quarter on Tuesday Night during Game 5 as the Raptors came back from 13 points down.
DeMar DeRozan put on a show, coming up with 34 points and shooting 10 of 22 from the field, with an added 12 of 13 from the free throw line. He had to outplay Paul George, and the pair of superstars have been putting on the battle of the series.
George put up 39 points in Game 5, shooting 11 of 19 from the field and getting himself to the free-throw line 12 times – holding 100 per cent accuracy. In addition, George had eight rebounds as his side ran away through the first three-quarters.
Interestingly though, when he sat midway through the second for a rest, the Raptors pounced and won the second quarter by six. In fact, George was on the bench for a total of 6:55 out of the 48 minutes, and the Raptors won those minutes by a combined total of 18 points.
It goes to show just how important George is to the Pacers, and why he must absolutely fire every second he is on the court for the Pacers to get up.
This also follows a constant trend across the series, with George top scoring in every game so far for the Pacers.
From a Raptors point of view, it is desperation stakes. There is absolutely zero excuse for them to not get out of the first round, as they have failed to do on their last two playoff visits. Kyle Lowry must up his game, and DeRozan also needs to find some consistency – something he had during the regular season.
Toronto must improve their offensive options. They looked a little one-dimensional in Game 5 – even when DeRozan took over. They shot the ball at only 40 per cent, and despite taking 10 more shots were down for most of the game.
Prediction
This series has been back and forth, but you would expect that if Paul George can have a big game, the Pacers will get over the line and force Game 7.
Pacers by 9.
Be sure to join The Roar for live scores of this match from 9:30am (AEST) and don’t forget to add your own comments in the section below.
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