Pacers 134, Wizards 130 (OT)
BRIAN KEEFE: They scored way too much in the second half. We really were good defensively in the first half. We still scored in the third quarter, but we didn't have a great defensive second half. That was really the key for us when they established the lead; credit to them. But our defense didn't sustain for the 48.
Q. You guys were able to hold Siakam in check for much of the game. What do you attribute that to?
BRIAN KEEFE: He's a good player. He hit some tough shots. They went small to change the game up. That kind of got them going. Looking for different matchups and stuff. But he's a good player. We just didn't hold him down the whole game. Did a good job in the first half I thought, though.
Q. In the second half the defensive issues, was that not executing? Was it effort? Was it that the Pacers --
BRIAN KEEFE: It wasn't effort. A little bit of execution. Some of it was turnovers a little bit. They sped up the game. They went smaller. They were attacking us quickly, trying to just look for matchups and seams. Give them some credit; they deserve it. We just didn't have the same force that we probably had in the first half.
Q. Was the decision to sub in Corey late in that fourth quarter, I guess about 20 seconds to go, because Jordan had five fouls and you had no one else to go to?
BRIAN KEEFE: Yeah, Jordan had five, yeah.
Q. What did you see offensively during the first three and a half minutes of that overtime in terms of ball movement, et cetera?
BRIAN KEEFE: Yeah, we'd got some decent looks, but some of them we got jammed up. They kind of upped their physicality in the fourth and into overtime. We got the good shots -- we got the shots we wanted at the end, and when we were down, Jordan executed the right last play, got the last shot, took a good one. They upped the pressure in the fourth, so give them credit. We got a little bit stagnant there in that overtime.
Q. You talked about the defense dropping off in that second half. What did you see that led to the dropoff?
BRIAN KEEFE: I think you've got to give them credit. It was them changing it up, went smaller to kind of get themselves going in the game. I think a little bit of it was some of our offense created some easy baskets for them, but then they were attacking us off the dribble when they were small.
Q. What can you say about how Jordan has gotten better as a closer over time? Obviously today a couple of the ones at the end didn't fall, but as you've seen him develop over the two years you've been with him?
BRIAN KEEFE: He has the ability to create shots for himself and for others. He puts so much pressure on the defense. He almost got us back there in overtime, hit some tough shots, got to the rim. Played well.
Q. What can you tell us about the injury to Brogdon?
BRIAN KEEFE: Just ankle. Don't really have much update on it right now.
Q. You guys set a franchise record for threes. What can you say about the shooting and the ball movement?
BRIAN KEEFE: That's the stuff where we really have been growing. Getting out in transition, touching the paint, kick-out shots, finding the open man. Our offense has gotten better. We're improving in that area. We showed a good half of first half defense, which I thought was really good. We didn't sustain it, though. That probably hurt us in the end.
But our offense is getting better. The ball is really moving. Multiple guys are sharing it, moving the ball, assists were high, good style, good brand. Getting better in that area.
Q. How did Alex look after his absence?
BRIAN KEEFE: Yeah, I thought he was good, a little rusty offensively. That's just getting the rust off, but you could see his impact as soon as he's on the court: The rim protection, the blocked shots, the passing. Good to have him back.
Q. We didn't see Tristan much, but we did see three centers. How did that shake out for you?
BRIAN KEEFE: I thought Tristan, he got a short little time, but his minutes were great. He played well. So we got some different lineups we can mix now, which is great.
Q. Any update on Justin?
BRIAN KEEFE: No update on Justin yet.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports