Pacers beat Bulls behind Tyrese Haliburton's 20-20 effort

The Indiana Pacers led by 25 points in the second half against the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls erased their deficit and led briefly before the Pacers used a 3-point barrage Thursday night to earn a 120-104 road win.

Tyrese Haliburton led the Pacers with 21 points, 20 assists, three rebounds and zero turnovers. Haliburton became the second player since 1985 to have at least 20 points and 20 assists with zero turnovers; Chris Paul achieved the feat against the New Orleans Pelicans in 2016.

Haliburton was questionable with a back injury before the game. He credited the training staff for getting him ready to play.

The win is the Pacers' second in a row. They improve to 16-14 on the season and 8-7 on the road. The Bulls fall to 14-19.

Here are four observations from the win.

Pacers use improved ball movement to generate offense

In the second game with their new starting lineup of Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Jalen Smith and Myles Turner, Haliburton led the charge and the Pacers whipped the ball around the perimeter, making the extra pass to create open shots.

When the Pacers attacked the basket, the Bulls lacked the rim protectors to stop them. If the Bulls cut off the Pacers' drives, their ball-handlers got the ball to the perimeter, moving the ball until they found a mismatch.

Thirty of the Pacers' 43 field goals were assisted on. Haliburton led Indiana with 20 and seven Pacers had at least one.

Tyrese Haliburton leads 3-point barrage

When the Pacers weren't moving the ball, Haliburton took it upon himself to score. Haliburton made three 3-pointers in the first half, two from near the half-court logo.

Pacers fans have become accustomed to Haliburton's long-range bombs, but all of the deep 3s sucked the air out of the United Center crowd.

Haliburton hit consecutive 3s in the fourth quarter, helping the Pacers reestablish their lead. His first 3 of the quarter broke a tie. After a Buddy Hield steal, Haliburton connected from the right corner again. The 3s were part of a 12-0 run that helped the Pacers regain control.

The Pacers finished 19-for-42 (45.2%) from 3. Haliburton led the Pacers with six 3s. Hield made five 3s, Nesmith made four.

Jalen Smith gives Pacers lift the inside

Smith played one of his best games of the season, with 15 points and seven rebounds. Smith scored 11 of his 15 points in the first half. Smith helped the Pacers build a 25-point lead, but the Bulls went small in the second half, forcing the Pacers to do the same.

Nesmith and Hield were on the floor to close out the game, but Smith's minutes proved crucial while center Andre Drummond was in the game.

Pacers show improved defense

The Pacers made playing better defense an emphasis after their post In-season Tournament skid, and they showed improvement limiting the Bulls.

The 52 first-half points allowed were the third fewest surrendered by the Pacers this season. The Bulls' .426 first-half field goal percentage was also the third-lowest allowed this season.

Over the last four games, the Pacers are 12th in points allowed. The Bulls' 104 points are the fewest the Pacers have allowed all season.

"The coaches made defense a big priority," Haliburton said during his postgame interview with Bally Sports. "We gave up 104 tonight, that's really good for us. We've been a lot better since we've been making that an emphasis.

"Shots are gonna fall, this is a make-or-miss league so we can't worry about our offense. We just got to get enough stops. When we get stops like that and play in transition, we're a really hard team to beat."

Pacers box score vs. Bulls

INDIANA (120): Nesmith 4-9 0-0 12, Smith 6-7 2-5 15, Turner 8-12 7-7 24, Haliburton 7-17 1-2 21, Nembhard 4-13 0-0 8, Jackson 1-1 1-3 3, Toppin 1-4 0-0 3, Mathurin 5-9 4-5 15, Hield 7-13 0-0 19. Totals 43-85 15-22 120.

CHICAGO (104): DeRozan 7-19 7-8 21, Williams 9-14 2-2 22, Drummond 3-9 1-4 7, Caruso 6-11 0-0 15, White 5-19 4-4 16, Phillips 0-0 0-0 0, Taylor 1-2 0-0 2, Terry 2-3 2-2 6, Sanogo 0-0 0-0 0, Carter 0-5 0-0 0, Dosunmu 7-15 1-2 15. Totals 40-97 17-22 104.

3-Point Goals—Indiana 19-42 (Haliburton 6-13, Hield 5-10, Nesmith 4-6, Smith 1-2, Turner 1-2, Mathurin 1-3, Toppin 1-3, Nembhard 0-3), Chicago 7-27 (Caruso 3-7, Williams 2-5, White 2-6, Taylor 0-1, Dosunmu 0-2, Carter 0-3, DeRozan 0-3). Fouled Out_None. Rebounds_Indiana 47 (Toppin 12), Chicago 47 (Drummond 16). Assists_Indiana 30 (Haliburton 20), Chicago 19 (DeRozan 5). Total Fouls_Indiana 21, Chicago 20. A_21,568 (20,917)

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Pacers vs. Bulls: Tyrese Haliburton's 20-20 effort leads victory