The Indiana Pacers closed out their 2017-18 regular-season campaign with a 119-93 loss to the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday night. Following the game, Pacers forward Lance Stephenson remained on the court to sign a few pieces of memorabilia, as it was Fan Appreciation Night inside Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
After a few successful tosses, Stephenson actually hit one of the on-duty police officers with a mini basketball that he had signed for a young patron. It appears to have been an accident, but Lance will be Lance, as most hoops fans know.
For the record, Stephenson signed his No. 1 jersey and tossed it into the crowd as well.
Stephenson logged 33 minutes in Tuesday's loss to the Hornets, scoring nine points on 3-10 shooting, 13 rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block.
Stephenson, now 27 years of age, has played a big role in Indiana's success this season, especially on the defensive end of the floor. The former University of Cincinnati Bearcat played in all 82 games with the Pacers, averaging 9.2 points on 42.7 percent shooting from the field (28.9 percent from beyond the arc), 5.2 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 22.6 minutes.
The Pacers (48-34) finished their regular season with the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference standings. Now, with a few teams still in contention for one more day, Indiana waits to see who they'll be playing in the first round of the playoffs. Will it be the 4th-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, who close out their regular season on Wednesday night with a matchup against the New York Knicks? Or will the 3rd-seeded Philadelphia 76ers fall to the fourth seed with a loss to the Milwaukee Bucks in their season finale on Wednesday?
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