The Indiana Pacers blew a 23-point third quarter lead and fell to the Charlotte Hornets 123-122 in Wednesday night’s season opener. P.J. Washington made two free throws with 4.6 seconds left to put the Hornets on top, and an 11-footer from Domantas Sabonis at the buzzer rimmed out. The Blue and Gold had an 84-63 advantage when the Hornets erased the lead with a 24-0 run. Sabonis led all scorers with 33 points and 15 rebounds. First round pick Chris Duarte broke a franchise record for points in his first career game with 27 points. The Pacers take on the Wizards Friday night in Washington, D.C.
Three injured Indianapolis Colts returned to practice Wednesday, including left guard Quenton Nelson. The All-Pro is still on injured reserve, but coach Frank Reich said that once Nelson returns to game action, his fill-in Chris Reed will split time with starting right guard Mark Glowinski. Second round pick Dayo Odeyingbo practiced Wednesday in a limited capacity. The rookie defensive end has not yet made his debut after suffering a torn Achilles in January. Wide receiver T.Y. Hilton and right tackle Braden Smith were among the Colts to not practice, as Indianapolis prepares for a Sunday night showdown with the 49ers.
Former Colts quarterback Jacob Eason was claimed off waivers by the Seattle Seahawks. The 2020 fourth-round pick was waived Tuesday, and would have been brought back to the Colts’ practice squad had he not been picked up off the waiver wire.
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing announced that Christian Lundgaard will join the IndyCar team on a multi-year deal. The current Formula 2 driver will pilot the number 30 Honda, replacing two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Takuma Stao. Lundgaard competed for RLL at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in August, and started fourth before finishing 12th. He was close to snagging the pole position in his lone IndyCar race, and beat out IndyCar veterans Santino Ferrucci and Oliver Askew for the full-time seat. The 20-year-old Danish driver won two F2 races in 2020 and finished seventh in the season standings.
