Nov 16, 2018; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Victor Oladipo (4) shoots the ball while Miami Heat forward Rodney McGruder (17) defends in the second half at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Photo Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Pacers proved they can win without leading scorer Victor Oladipo.
Now they might have to do it again.
Oladipo, who averages 21.4 points, played just five minutes in Saturday night’s 97-89 victory over Atlanta after aggravating a knee injury in the first quarter. The shooting guard is listed as day-to-day as the Pacers (10-6) host the Utah Jazz (8-8) Monday night.
Indiana is seeking a third consecutive victory as it closes out a home stand. Utah is 2-2 on its five-game road trip.
Rookie guard Aaron Holiday gave the Pacers a lift in the second half against Atlanta. Indiana, which struggled in games last season when Oladipo didn’t play, trailed by as many as 14 in the third quarter.
Holiday scored all 12 points of 4-of-6 shooting in 15 minutes, all in the second half. Prior to Saturday night, Holiday had scored just five points in 16 minutes.
“If I get the chance, I’m going to go out there and take advantage,” Holiday told Fox Sports Indiana. “That’s what I did.”
Holiday said he was told by the coaching staff before halftime to be ready to go in.
“When my number was called, I was ready,” Holiday said.
Pacers coach Nate McMillan said Holiday worked hard during training camp and during the season to keep himself ready.
“If any of our guards went down, he was going to be the next guard we put out there,” McMillan said. “He was ready for it. He prepared himself. We don’t win this game if he doesn’t come in and play the way he did. His defense was good. He made some big shots, which he’s capable of making. He really came in and calm us down.”
Indiana guard Darren Collison said Holiday has been consistently working.
“It makes you happy to see the success he had (Saturday),” Collison said. “He’s going to be a good player in this league. His family is good. He has some experience even though he’s a rookie. The sky’s the limit for him.”
Holiday’s older brothers Jrue (New Orleans) and Justin (Chicago) are NBA veterans.
Pacers reserve guard Cory Joseph wasn’t surprised by Holiday’s play, either
“He’s been putting the work in,” Joseph said. “He was definitely ready for the moment.”
Utah guard Donovan Mitchell was ready for his, too.
Mitchell scored 28 points on 10-of-21 shooting and dished out six assists in Utah’s 98-86 victory over
visiting Boston on Saturday night.
It was turnaround from Friday night when Mitchell scored 31 points but was 13 of 35 from field and had no assists in a 113-107 loss at Philadelphia.
Mitchell was heckled by crowds in Philadelphia and Boston.
“Can’t please everybody, you’re not going to,” Mitchell told The Salt Lake Tribune. “I personally like the negative stuff. I prefer playing with that. I wish I could have that every game. But that’s just been always been always me. I’m not going to forget what happened (Friday) but I’m going to continue to allow it to push me.”
Jazz point guard Ricky Rubio scored 20 points and contributed three steals
“Man, Ricky was all over the place defensively, offensively,” Mitchell said. “That’s the Ricky Rubio that we need.”
Utah coach Quin Snyder was happy with the team’s showing.
“For us to come out as focused as we did shows a lot of character from our group against a very good team in a difficult environment to play in,” Snyder said.
