Myles Turner scores 31, Pacers avoid play

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Myles Turner had 31 points and Pascal Siakam scored 28 as the Indiana Pacers beat the Atlanta Hawks 157-115 on Sunday and avoided falling into the play-in tournament.

Indiana, in the playoffs for the first time since 2020, secured the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference and faces third-seeded Milwaukee in a best-of-seven first-round series.

“I’m proud of this group,” said Turner, who added 12 rebounds and four blocked shots. “It wasn’t easy. It wasn’t pretty, but we got to where we needed to go. It’s been a long four years.”

Dejounte Murray scored 32 points for the Hawks, who finished the regular season 10th in the East at 36-46 and visit the ninth-placed Chicago Bulls on Wednesday to open the play-in tournament.

“The way (the Pacers) play is hard to simulate,” Atlanta coach Quin Snyder said. “You’re disappointed when you end the season like this, but the season isn’t over. You move forward immediately because we play Chicago on Wednesday.”