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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Ben DuBose

Takeaways: Jabari Smith Jr. enjoys career night as Pacers edge Rockets

The young and rebuilding Houston Rockets didn’t get the win in Thursday’s 132-123 overtime loss at Indiana (box score). But given their situation, they may have gained something more valuable.

Rookie forward Jabari Smith Jr., the No. 3 draft pick of the 2022 first round, scored a career-high 30 points to go with 12 rebounds. Most importantly, his tying 3-pointer in the last seconds of regulation kept the game going. That helped the Rockets (15-51) keep pace with heavily favored Indiana (30-37), even on the road.

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Jalen Green added 24 points and 4 assists for Houston, while KJ Martin had 23 points and 3 rebounds on 9-of-13 shooting (69.2%). Tyrese Haliburton led the Pacers with 29 points and 19 assists.

As expected, Houston was without its usual starting point guard, Kevin Porter Jr., who sat out with a left thigh contusion. His return timetable is not clear.

Scroll on for highlights, analysis and postgame interviews. Next up for Houston is Saturday night’s home game versus Chicago, which kicks off a six-game homestand at Toyota Center.

Highlights

Analysis and Interviews

 

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