It’s back to Indianapolis.
There will be a Game 7 after the Pacers rallied in the fourth quarter for a 95-88 victory over the Hawks in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series Thursday night at Philips Arena. The series is tied 3-3 as both teams have won twice on the opposition’s floor.
The deciding game will be Saturday at 5:30 p.m.
The Pacers went on a 12-1 run late to grab the do-or-die victory.
The Hawks led by five points, 84-79, late in the fourth quarter. The Pacers answered with six straight points and took a one-point lead, 85-84, with under two minutes remaining.
Pero Antic made one of two free throws with 1:24 remaining to tie the score. David West scored in close with 45.5 seconds left after the Pacers got a new possession after an offensive rebound. After a Hawks timeout, Lou Williams had a pass intercepted by Paul George on a drive to the basket. George made two free throws with 33.8 seconds left. Jeff Teague missed a drive to the basket and George made another two free throws with 25.1 seconds left to give the Pacers at 91-85 lead. George Hill added two more free throws after another Hawks miss for good measure.
Teague led the Hawks with a game-high 29 points. Paul Millsap had 16 points, 18 rebounds and five assists. Lou Williams had 13 points off the bench, including five straight points early in the fourth quarter.
West and George each had 24 points for the Pacers.
The Hawks trailed by as many as nine points, 57-48, midway through the third quarter.
Then the Hawks came to life.
They closed the quarter on a 19-7 run with Teague scoring 12 of the points, including 8 of the last 10. They led 67-64 headed into the final period.
The Hawks were aided by two key moments in the run. Paul George picked up his fourth foul and had to go to the bench at the 5:09 mark. Minutes later, Mike Scott threw down a thunderous dunk over Ian Mahinmi with 3:19 remaining in the period. Posters will be available soon.
“The playoffs is a huge mind game in a lot of ways,” Kyle Korver said before the game. “You try not to get too high, too low. You try to stay steady. You try to do your job. You try to keep it simple. You try to do simple well. That is the mindset you always try to have. There are emotions. This is basketball.”
The Pacers took a 44-39 halftime lead after a back-and-forth first half.
The Hawks led by as many as 10 points in the first quarter. They have had a double-digit at some point in all six games of the series. The Pacers erased the deficit with a 14-2 run between the first and second quarter.
A shoving match between the Hawks’ Mike Scott and the Pacers’ George Hill with 19 seconds left in the second quarter. Television replays show Hill initiating a shove on Scott after a play underneath the Hawks basket. Pacers coach Frank Vogel ran onto the court to separate the players. During the fracas, replays show Pacers players George and Rasual Butler stepping onto the court. They could face a suspension for leaving the bench in the vicinity of an on-court altercation.
