• The Pacers win again with Tyrese Haliburton leading the way, and Aaron Nesmith stepping up when it mattered most.

INDIANAPOLIS — Tyrese Haliburton posted 22 points and 10 assists to lead the Pacers to a 119-105 win over the Hornets on Wednesday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

The Pacers improved to 45-31, holding on to their lead for fourth place in the Eastern Conference. They have already clinched a top-6 seed in the playoffs. The Hornets fell to 19-57.

Forward Aaron Nesmith added 16 points for the Pacers. Center Myles Turner and Pascal Siakam scored 15 each. Center Thomas Bryant added 13 points.

Here are three things that stood out.

Tyrese Haliburton has a new double-doubles streak

After failing to post a points-assists double-double against both the Wizards in last week’s blowout and against the Thunder in Saturday’s loss, Tyrese Haliburton posted his second straight in Wednesday’s game and now has 14 in his last 16 games.

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Haliburton scored eight points in the first quarter alone, hitting three of his first four shots and his first two 3s and stayed locked in from there. He finished with 22 points on 9-of-15 shooting including 4 of 6 from 3-point range with 10 assists, no turnovers, two blocks and two steals.

Aaron Nesmith helped the Pacers close it out

Nesmith took a while to find his shooting range Wednesday night and that was helpful for the Hornets trying to hang around. He was 1 of 4 from the floor in the first half, missing all three of his 2-point shots. He finally got a 3-pointer to fall in the third, but was still 2 of 6 from the floor with five points going into the fourth.

But Nesmith went on a tear both going to the rim and shooting from outside midway through the fourth quarter which helped them put the game away.

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The Pacers had gone up 10 when he drove from the slot and drew lots of contact before throwing in an acrobatic left-handed layup. He was fouled and converted the three-point play, then hit 3-pointers on the next two possessions before finishing a reverse layup off a no-look pass from Haliburton, giving the Pacers 11 points in a row. He finished with 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting including 3 of 9 from 3-point range.

Jarace Walker extended his double-figure streak

Bennedict Mathurin’s absence due to left calf soreness continues to create opportunities for second-year forward Jarace Walker and Walker continues to take advantage.

Walker scored in double figures for the fourth straight game, his second-longest streak of the season and of his career. He hit a 3 in each of the first two quarters to get started and then finished 3 of 8 from the floor and 3 of 5 from beyond the arc for 10 points. He also grabbed six rebounds, dished out two assists and posted a plus-22 plus-minus figure.