Jock Landale shines as Spurs fall to the Pacers

The shorthanded San Antonio Spurs fell at the hands of the understaffed Indiana Pacers on Saturday night in a matchup between two teams on the fringes of the play-in tournament. Despite making several runs throughout the evening, the good guys never regained enough control of the contest to force their way back in front.

Jock Landale played like he was possessed, registering a career-high 26 points and seven rebounds on 12-of-15 shooting from the field in almost 35 minutes off the bench. Lonnie Walker IV chipped in 20 points and six boards as a reserve, while Devin Vassell bolstered the starting lineup with 19 points, seven rebounds, and three assists.

Devin Vassell pulled off a behind-the-back move into a eurostep and left his floater a tad short but made up for it by tracking down his misfire and putting it back up with two hands.

Goga Bitadze and Oshae Brissett got turned around on a ball screen near the top of the key, leaving a big window for Josh Primo to toss a baseball pass to Jock Landale for a slam.

Vassell left Tyrese Haliburton in his dust with a beautiful backdoor cut as Zach Collins hit him in stride with a perfect bounce pass for a one-handed posterization of Duane Washington Jr.

Jock Landale refused to give up on the possession after Josh Primo was a bit off the mark from beyond the arc, keeping his focus for a tip-in despite mid-air contact that sent him to the floor.

Indiana acted like playing defense was optional for most of the first half, which was perfectly fine as Spurs fans watched Keita Bates-Diop streak to the basket for a two-handed rim-rocker.

Here is another angle of that emphatic flush for Devin.

Though Silver and Black fell behind by 19 points in the second frame, they closed the gap to a single-digit deficit as Lonnie Walker IV spurred a 14-2 run right before the half.

Jock was a man on a mission in his first extended minutes in just over two weeks, coming within a singular point of his NBA career-high by the time the Spurs headed back to the locker room.

The rookie center kept things rolling in the second half as he faced up on the block and drained a silky mid-range jumper over Goga Bitadze for his 22nd point of the evening.

And as always, here are the full game highlights.