CONTROVERSIAL LOSS TO NETSGC
July 9, 2020
INDIANAPOLIS – Pacers Gaming squared off against NetsGC tonight in a best-of-three series played remotely. In a very controversial series, involving two timely dropouts by NetsGC and a timeout mechanic exploited which forced Pacers players to start at half court on a last-second NetsGC shot, Pacers Gaming lose 1-2 against NetsGC.
In a best-of-three NBA 2K League series that went all three games, took almost four hours to complete and started late Wednesday night and finished Thursday morning, Pacers Gaming suffered a heart-breaking loss to Nets GC, 2-1: losing the last two games, 71-69 and 77-73 after winning Game 1, 80-58. The Pacers, now 6-9 on the season, will play Friday evening, July 10, at 9:00 p.m. vs. Celtics Crossover Gaming. Each series result counts as one game in the league standings.
The Pacers new revamped lineup looked great in Game 1 as the team built an early lead and rolled to the 22-point victory. Bobby Buckets, playing his first game at center had 14 points and 17 rebounds while shooting seven of 10 from the field. Center Jomar moved to point guard and dished out 10 assists to go along with 23 points. Sharpshooting Swizurk had 20 points and WoLF netted 14 in the win. NateKahl was a perfect three-for-three from the three for nine points. Choc had 29 for Brooklyn. The Pacers had only seven turnovers while forcing Brooklyn into 15.
The Blue & Gold started strong in Game 2, pushing out to a four-point lead after the first quarter, 23-19. But the Nets outscored Indiana 24-12 in the second period to take a 43-35 lead at intermission. The Pacers roared back in the third quarter, outscoring Brooklyn 19-12 to pull within one, 55-54 after three periods. The Pacers led late but a controversial finish resulted in a last-second basket by the Nets to steal a 71-69. The game was halted a few times due to technical problems and the Pacers in fact protested the outcome of the contest and it was not officially decided until a half hour after the encounter, upholding the Nets win and forcing a Game 3. Jomar led the Pacers with a career-high 32 points while WoLF added 15. Bobby Buckets registered a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Choc had 36 points for the Nets while Shuttles added 11 points and 11 rebounds.
In Game 3, the Pacers fell into a hole early, trailing by eight, 23-15 after one quarter. But Pacers Gaming came back in the second quarter, outscoring Brooklyn 25-14 to take a 38-37 lead at halftime. Jomar had 13 points and Swizurk scored 11 in the first half while Choc had 15 for the Nets. Brooklyn outscored Indiana 20-18 in the third quarter and the Pacers led 58-57 heading to the final period of play in the deciding game. Brooklyn outscored the Pacers 20-15 in the final period to win the game and take the series Jomar led the Pacers with 22 points and Swizurk netted 20. Bobby Buckets scored 14 points and pulled down a team-record 21 rebounds. Choc had 31 points and 13 assists for the Nets while Shuttles produced 24 points and 13 rebounds.
Results below:
Game 1
Game 2:
Game 3: