Pacers outclass Bucks in series opener

Andrew Nembhard and Pascal Siakam combined for 27 points in a run-away first half, Tyrese Haliburton directed a high-efficiency offense with a game-high 12 assists and the Indiana Pacers opened their NBA Eastern Conference first-round playoff series with a 117-98 thumping of the visiting Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday afternoon.Siakam finished with a team-high 25 points, Myles Turner added 19 and Nembhard had 17, helping the fourth-seeded Pacers gain the early edge in the best-of-seven against a team that had beaten them three of four in the regular season, including once on Indiana’s floor.Giannis Antetokounmpo powered his way to a game-high 36 points for the fifth-seeded Bucks, who played without star guard Damian Lillard, out with deep vein thrombosis in his right calf. The Bucks expect Lillard back either for Tuesday’s Game 2 rematch in Indianapolis or Game 3 Friday when the scene shifts to Milwaukee.The series opener was never in doubt after an early 12-2 burst gave the Pacers a 15-8 lead. Nembhard had six points and Siakam and Aaron Nesmith a 3-pointer apiece in the early run.The Bucks, who won their last eight games of the regular season, hung within 53-41 after two Antetokounmpo converted a three-point play with 3:45 left in the half. But Bennedict Mathurin buried a 3-pointer to trigger a 14-2, half-closing run that broke the game open at 67-43 entering the break.Siakam shot 10-for-15 and Nembhard 8-for-13 for the Pacers, who earned the home-court advantage in the series by virtue of winning 50 games in the regular season, two more than the Bucks.