Myles Turner dunked then hit a 3 with the Pacers fans chanting his name in a masterpiece

INDIANAPOLIS — The crowd was already in a frenzy, chanting Myles Turner’s name, when Andrew Nembhard spotted Turner standing at the top of the key.

Turner, who later said he did not realize it was his name creating the noise in that moment Sunday night inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse, was open briefly as Tyrese Haliburton screened Brook Lopez. Turner took the pass from Nembhard, let it fly from the 3-point line, bounced to the other end of the floor as the ball found the bottom of the net and put a hand to his left ear as if to say, “I hear you now, Pacers’ fans.”

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A Bucks’ timeout let the moment linger a little longer, a decisive blow as the Pacers’ lead grew to 14 points midway through the fourth quarter. The Pacers finished off the Bucks with a 126-113 win to take a 3-1 series lead in first round Eastern Conference series.

“That was special,” said the 28-year-old Turner, in his ninth season with the Pacers. “I didn’t realize I hit the 3 while they were chanting my name. I saw that afterwards. But that was very special, just knowing how much the city means to me and they reciprocated that love. It was dope moment for me. Definitely up there.”

And it might not have even been the highlight of the night for the Pacers’ center, who delivered a masterpiece. The 6-11 Turner finished with 29 points on 7-for-9 shooting from the 3-point line, along with nine rebounds, four assists and three blocked shots.

But the play that had everybody buzzing was Turner’s third-quarter dunk. Was it a dunk? We’ll call it a dunk. Turner, flying down the lane, took a dump-off pass from T.J. McConnell and rose over the outstretched arms of 7-1 Brook Lopez and sent the ball on a downward trajectory through the basket, seemingly without even touching the rim.

“I had a good view,” said McConnell, who said it was the best Turner dunk he has witnessed.

Turner agreed, saying it was “up there.”

“I was joking with my teammates that I feel like every postseason I get one of these since I’ve been in the league,” Turner said. “It’s nothing new for me. I tell them all the time, ‘I’m not dunking in the regular season but in the postseason I’ll be straight.’ I got my legs right, just saw an opening and was able to get a great dunk.”

Haliburton, inadvertently, used the word “punch” twice after the game to describe different elements of the Pacers’ victory on Sunday. That word drew some chuckles considering the backdrop of the incident in the first quarter when Bobby Portis of the Bucks was ejected for pushing Nembhard in the chest and then throwing a right hand in the direction of his face.

“I thought we weathered that punch,” Haliburton said of the Bucks’ desperation, playing without Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo due to injuries.

Turner quickly corrected Haliburton. “Storm,” Turner said. “Weathered the storm.”

Add another assist to Turner’s stat line.

It was a continuation of an excellent playoff series for Turner, who also had 29 points and nine rebounds in the Game 3 victory on Friday. In the Pacers’ three victories in the series, Turner is averaging 26.7 points and 8.3 rebounds and shooting 14-for-25 from the 3-point line.

And though Lopez was on the receiving end of the dunk of the year by Turner, the Bucks’ vet delivered an outstanding performance his own with 27 points and nine rebounds on 12-for-18 shooting, including 3-for-5 from the 3-point line.

“I thought both of those guys played amazing games,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. “Lopez was spectacular and so was Myles. It was a great battle between the two of them.”

The last two games have both been playoff highs for Turner, who was not much of a 3-point shooter in his first playoff series in 2016. He has steadily become that threat for the Pacers, hitting 35.8% this season, a tick above his career mark of 35.4%. Against a player like Lopez, who is not known as a perimeter defender, Turner was able to take advantage.

On a night when the Pacers shot 22-for-43 from the 3-point line as a team, Turner led the way.

“Not only tonight,” McConnell said. “He’s been doing it all year. He’s the anchor to our defense and he can be a mismatch for a lot of teams the way he’s able to step out and make shots. If not, just kind of get off it and go to the next action and be a presence at the rim offensively as well. Obviously, he was really, really good tonight and deserved those fans calling his name. He played really well.”

Turner, the longest-tenured Pacer, is arguably the biggest factor in how far these Pacers can go in the playoffs. Carlisle is certainly looking no further than Game 5 at Milwaukee, where the Pacers will find a team even more desperate than the one it saw Sunday. Though the Pacers have certainly been aided by the Bucks’ injury woes, Turner said the turnaround from Game 1 has also been due to an adjustment in how they are playing on offense.

“A lot of it for me is read and react, read and react,” Turner said. “Which is pretty much what our offense is. I’ve been shooting threes my entire life, man. I didn’t really shoot many 3s in college or coming into the league, but I’ve always been capable, and I’ve put in a lot of work. I’ve continued to put the work in, and the results will show.”

The results showed. No stat line necessary. Just listen to the crowd.

Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Turner's offensive masterpiece leads Pacers to Game 4 win over Bucks