Sixers-Pacers: J.J. Redick's clutch shooting, and other quick thoughts from a 121-110 win

He returned from a two-game absence on Wednesday against the Hawks but shot an abysmal 3-of-11 from the field. Seems like he just needed that game to settle back in. He shot 11-of-19 against the Pacers on Friday, including 8-of-12 from three, finishing with a game-high tying 31 points. He hit a key trey with 2:06 left, breaking a tie and giving the Sixers a 113-110 lead. He hit another one with 1:08 left to extend the lead and hit yet another with 46 seconds left to put the icing on the cake.

The Sixers center is averaging 3.4 fouls a game this season (heading into Friday's game against the Pacers). By the 8:57 mark in the third quarter he had already racked up four, and those were just the fouls he was called for. He could very easily have been charged with at least two more by that point. It's been talked about before and it'll keep being brought up until the big man cuts down on the miscues.

He is a reliable three-point shooter and a great defender. But with so much success, especially from beyond the arc, teams are going to start guarding him with more ferocity on the perimeter. He seems prepared for that as well. We're seeing him attack the basket more aggressively. He's doing everything in his power to show the Sixers that he deserves a lucrative deal when the front office decides to discuss his contract. He finished with 22 points.

Holmes entered the game in the third quarter (when Joel Embiid picked up his fourth foul). His first score came on a putback dunk. He missed a couple of jumpers that looked pretty flat, but that's to be expected when you have been out of the game for several weeks. Most noticeably, he helped shut down the paint. The Pacers scored 44 points down low in the first half and only scored 14 in the paint in the second half. Holmes finished with six points in just over 10 minutes against Indiana.

The Sixers were lucky that Redick found his shot and was right on the money in a high pressure situation. Embiid, missed two dunks in the waning minutes of the game, the Sixers turned the ball over, Ben Simmons lost his footing and got tangled in traffic. It was another close game that the Sixers nearly gave away and could have easily gone to the Pacers had it not been for Redick's heroics.