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Sometimes, you’re just on. Sometimes, you’re really, really on. And other times, you’re the Pacers last night.

Today’s Lineup

🎉 Happy birthday to Adem Bona, 70s legend Rick Barry, and Enjoyers Andrew, AJ, Malachi, and Zoe! 🎉

Game Recaps

Pacers put up franchise-best offensive performance in 162-109 win over Wizards

That’s not a typo—the Pacers really scored 162 whole points last night.

This game, as you might suspect, was never really close. The Pacers were up by 20+ going into the break, but the second half was really where the fun started. Tyrese Haliburton (29 PTS) led the way, but when it was all said and done, nine Pacers scored in double-figures last night against the Wizards.

That all contributed to the 12th-highest individual team score in NBA history. All we can say, Wizards fans, is that we hope the lottery goes well.

LeBron’s buzzer-beating tip-in lifts Lakers over Pacers 120-119

Just one day before the Pacers set their single-game scoring record, though, they experienced something a little less fun at home against the Lakers.

This was a game of quarters—the Pacers led after the first, the Lakers led big after the second, and L.A.’s lead had been cut down to within five after the third. And with six Pacers with at least 13+ points, highlighted by Bennedict Mathurin’s 23 and Tyrese Haliburton’s incredible playmaking display (16 PTS, 18 AST), this was an Indy team effort that truly almost got the job done.

Key word: almost. With Indy up 119-118, Luka Doncic (34 PTS, 7 REB, 7 AST) let go of a 13-foot floater that hit the front of the rim, but LeBron James (13 PTS, 13 REB, 7 AST) was right there to tip it in and hand Los Angeles the win. Money!

Elsewhere around the NBA…

• Without making a single three-pointer (and only attempting two of them), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander recorded 37 PTS to help the Thunder to a comfortable 125-104 win over Jaren Jackson (27 PTS) and the Grizzlies. You don’t have to take threes if you can do stuff like this!

• After being sidelined for five games due to a leg injury, Nikola Jokic (39 PTS, 10 REB, 10 AST) didn’t miss a step on Wednesday. He came within one point of the sixth 40-point triple-double of his career in a 127-117 Denver win over the shorthanded Bucks, with Brook Lopez (26 PTS, 7 REB) leading Milwaukee in scoring.

• When Tyler Herro (36 PTS) does what he does and the Heat shoot it like they did against Atlanta last night (54.5% from three as a team), it’s hard for Miami to lose games. They took the Hawks down 122-112 despite 29 PTS and 12 AST from Trae Young.

• Stephon Castle flirted with a triple-double (22 PTS, 11 REB, 8 AST), but it wasn’t enough to overcome what the Cavs brought to the table at home. Cleveland beat San Antonio 124-116 behind Donovan Mitchell’s 25 and 14.

• After being down the entire first half, Kawhi Leonard (27 PTS, 10 REB, 7 AST) and the Clippers stormed back and stole a 126-113 win over the Knicks at MSG despite a big night for KAT (34 PTS, 14 REB).

• And finally… the Bulls were down 115-110 with 12 seconds left against the Lakers last night, but two three-pointers in just six seconds put Chicago right back in the game. Then, it was Josh Giddey (25 PTS, 14 REB, 11 AST) who delivered for the Bulls in the form of a magnificent half-court shot to hand Chicago the 119-117 win. Have minds been officially changed about the Caruso-Giddey trade?

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Top Five Friday

With the end of March Madness comes the end of the college basketball season, and with the end of the college basketball season comes NBA draft season! Here are five prospects whose March Madness performances have stood out so far:

1. Derik Queen (C, Maryland): Queen and his Terrapins may have just been knocked out of the tournament by Florida, who’ll get some representation later down this list, but what’s true is still true: Queen is a strong, offensively-skilled big man who provides a lot of playmaking upside as well. His buzzer-beater against Colorado State is one of the craziest plays of the tournament so far, but it’s just one in a serious of many impressive offensive moments from Queen so far this March.

2. Walter Clayton Jr. (G, Florida): A confident and competitive scorer, Clayton absolutely shot the lights out of the ball in Florida’s second-round win over UConn before leading the Gators to the Elite Eight with a win over Maryland last night. Currently projected to be a second-round pick, the Florida guard has shown March audiences just what his microwave scoring can do in big moments.

3. Egor Demin (G/F, BYU): After scaring a lot of BYU fans with a poor performance in the Big 12 Tournament, Demin came all the way around with a nice game (15 PTS, 3 3PT) against VCU in the first round. The point forward will have to be a little more efficient shooting the ball to carve out a large NBA role, but he’s shown he has the skills to do so while also being a solid passer and athlete.

4. Jeremiah Fears (G, Oklahoma): Did Oklahoma lose their first and only March Madness game this year? Yes, yes they did. But Fears dropped 20 PTS and made some incredible passes in that game, making us all the more excited to see where the bona fide scorer lands in the NBA.

5. Alex Condon (C, Florida): Also moving on to the Elite Eight alongside Clayton and the rest of the Florida Gators, Condon is a high-energy defensive big whose impact on opposing centers has been more than felt this March. Here’s hoping his injury from last night isn’t a signifier of anything more serious that’ll affect his NBA chances!

Three in the Key

Signing Off

Thanks for sticking with us this week, Enjoyers! If you’re feeling a little too much Madness this March, take this weekend one step at a time. You won’t believe what you’re able to experience if you Just. Slow. Down. See you Monday!

Austin Zeglis