The Numbers Behind Pacers Franchise-Record Scoring Night Vs Wizards

72 games into the Indiana Pacers 2024-25 season, their median points scored in a game is 117. They average about 116.6 points per contest, and on Wednesday night, they scored 119 in a loss against the Los Angeles Lakers. Their general range of scoring was pretty clear entering their Thursday, March 27 tilt with the Washington Wizards.

With 2:14 on the clock, reserve center Thomas Bryant drilled a three-point shot that gave Indiana 118 points. They passed their season average at that moment. 67 seconds later, Jarace Walker launched, and drilled, another triple. That gave the Pacers 121 points, more than they scored the night before.

Those clock readings, though? They were in the third quarter. There were still 13 minutes of basketball coming in the nation’s capital. Yet the blue and gold had already eclipsed 120 points in the game. The Wizards defense was struggling, and the Pacers were taking advantage.

“We did a good job of bringing energy,” Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton said after the game. “Obviously, making shots is fun. I thought we just played the right way.”

Indiana led by 37 points entering the fourth quarter. Their starting lineup didn’t touch the floor in the final period, and key reserves barely played. Yet the Pacers scored 37 more points in the frame – giving them 162 in total when the final buzzer sounded. It was a 53-point victory for the blue and gold and a record-setting offensive night.

What records did the Pacers set on Thursday vs the Wizards?

162 points in one game is the most the Pacers have scored in their NBA franchise history (when the Pacers were in the ABA, they scored more points twice). To do it in an outing without overtime was impressive, and the numbers behind Indiana’s remarkable performance could be in the record books for a while.

In fact, it was just the second time since the turn of the century that a team scored more than 160 points during a game decided in regulation – the Denver Nuggets scored 168 points in a March 2008 win over the Seattle Supersonics.

Denver, fittingly, has been a part of several games that featured gaudy scoring numbers. The Pacers bludgeoning of the Wizards was the first time since 1979 that a team scored 160+ points in regulation in a game that didn’t feature the Nuggets at all – in that 46-year gap, every 160+ scoreboard in a regulation-decided game was by, or against, Denver.

“It’s obviously fun to watch when you’re coaching a team making all the shots,” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said after the game. He was happy with the spirit his team brought to the outing, especially following a buzzer-beating loss the previous night.

It was just the 13th time that the Pacers had ever scored 150 points in a game and third time they reached 160. There were signs early that a big night was coming. Indiana knocked down three jump shots in the first 62 seconds of the game, including two three-point shots, and they were off and running.

Haliburton, in particular, stood out. He buried five three-point field goals in the first half on his way to 19 points at halftime. He ended the night as the Pacers leading scoring, finishing with 29 points in under 25 minutes of action.

“[Haliburton] was the change agent early in the game,” Carlisle said. “He got going, the first play we ran he hit a three. He gets that vibe going, and it gets our team juiced up.”

Haliburton’s shooting was exceptional, and that ended up being contagious. The Pacers made 14 three-point shots in the first half and 27 in the game. 27 is a franchise record for the blue and gold – they had never canned more than 23 triples in one outing before Thursday.

It was the ninth time that the Pacers hit at least 22 threes in one performance. They were hot and never stopped raining in jumpers. Haliburton hit seven. Walker and Myles Turner hit four. Aaron Nesmith, Ben Sheppard, and Bryant all hit multiple. No matter who was shooting from beyond the arc, it went in.

“Our ball movement was really good. [Haliburton] got us going with the threes,” Carlisle said.

That passing Carlisle mentioned was also noticeable. The Pacers had 48 assists, the most they’ve had in a game this season. It was the second-best mark in franchise history and the third time the Pacers have finished a game with 45 dimes.

Haliburton, one of the best passers in the NBA, only had six of those assists. Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell (eight each) led the way while Quenton Jackson (seven) and Pascal Siakam (five) both chipped in. 48 assists is the most that any NBA team has accumulated in a single game this season.

The Pacers were unselfish and celebrated their teammates’ success. It led to historic point totals, and the jovial reactions were seemingly endless. “We just love being around each other. We’ve got a really close bond as a group,” Haliburton said.

At halftime of the game, the Pacers already had 83 points. It was just the sixth time in the Pacers NBA history that they scored 80 points in a half. It took 14 three-point shots to do it, and the team had 23 assists at the break.

83 points actually matched the Pacers lowest point total in a full game from this season. 14 threes exceeded their lowest mark from a 48-minute performance this year (three) as did their 23 assists (18). They were putting up more offensive numbers in the first half than entire outings.

“It’s always awesome when the work you put in shows. We’re always in the gym, always getting up shots, always working on our game,” Pacers forward Jarace Walker said. “I feel like tonight was definitely a show of that.”

Altogether, the absurd scoring night raised the Pacers season-long offensive rating by 0.6 points. Nine different players scored in double figures. It was the highest scoring game by any NBA team this season, and it will live in Indiana’s record books.