Pacers

Behind the scenes in Hilton Coliseum as Tyrese Haliburton returned to Ames

Haliburton returned to Iowa State this week.

Tyrese Haliburton warming up in front of Iowa State and Pacers fans in Hilton Coliseum.

AMES, Iowa – If the seats weren't red, you wouldn't have known it wasn't Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

Hilton Coliseum hosted the Indiana Pacers and Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night for Tyrese Haliburton's first game back after a 472 day absence. It was a touching gesture from the Pacers and a bit of closure for Haliburton, who had his final collegiate season end early due to a wrist injury.

As Haliburton and his teammates walked into his old stomping grounds, they weren't greeted by the Cyclones court. Rather, it was the familiar hardwood from Gainbridge Fieldhouse – it even had the arena name printed right there on the floor despite that not being the hosting arena.

For a breakdown of the game itself, head right here. This is more about setting the scene, which was a mashup of the environments you might find at a typical Iowa State game painted to look exactly like a game in Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

There were shirts that said "Cyclone Hali" all over the student sections at both ends of the court – a reference to the Iowa State student section called "Cyclone Alley". Those shirts were waiting for the thousands of fans, most of whom were Iowa State attendees, that lined up outside hours before the game. One group that brought lawn chairs told me they arrived between 6 and 7 a.m.

Haliburton bought tickets for students to attend and hoped to get a college style atmosphere. That was a massive success – more on that to come. But those shirts, which were Pacers gold in color, created quite the atmosphere. Pacers branding everywhere, with Iowa State colors surrounding it from all sides.

It was a Pacers court. The graphic package on the jumbotron? Pacers. The cheerleaders? Well, some of both Iowa State and Pacers – the Pacemates were the primary group, though.

Kurt Streblow was there to emcee, as he does for many Pacers games when he isn't on Fever PA duties. DJ Bandcamp was there playing music. Troy Pepper was the PA announcer – he's done many Pacers and NBA games in the past.

It was truly a Pacers production, and the fans were there to cheer them on. Despite it being a neutral site game, fans were chanting "de-fense," when the Timberwolves had the ball. They booed when Andrew Nembhard was whistled for an early foul. Outside of second-half boos for Braden Smith, it felt like a Pacers home game from the court to the crowd.

And those fans were loud. They were asked to do a fake cheer for a TV story about the game, and they were deafening. Obi Toppin was warming up and went up to dunk just before they erupted – he ended up missing the dunk and, for a moment, perceived the cheers as a response to his gaffe.

While other Pacers players certainly added to this environment, this was Haliburton's day. And that extended to his family, too. His father John walked past a group of students and chatted with several, taking in an experience he did several times while his son was a student at ISU. He high fived at least 100 people Wednesday night.

Tyrese's mother, Brenda, sat courtside and watched as her son warmed up and chatted with fans. Tyrese hugged several familiar faces as he navigated the arena before and after the game, making time for everyone.

When he came out of the locker room to warm up about an hour before the game, Haluburton was greeted by huge cheers. Every single time he put a shot through the net, the student section(s) shouted a "Yeah!" or "Woo!". That lasted for about 10 minutes. Haliburton then finished his routine and signed jerseys and shirts courtside.

He went back to his locker, sandwiched between James Johnson and Obi Toppin. There, his uniform sat... behind another uniform. Haliburton's 0 jersey was draped under a different one, a Haliburton jersey with the number 22 on the back. That's what he wore at Iowa State and what he put on while introduced as a starter.

He then addressed the crowd. "It's been 472 days since I played a game of basketball. I wouldn't want to do it anywhere else," Haliburton said.

He played fine, reading the game well and moving ok physically. Haliburton said postgame adrenaline had him moving too fast. But he still finished with seven points and six assists, scoring the Pacers first basket of the game.

At halftime, Haliburton was shut down for the night. That gave him a chance to soak in the vibes, which included Iowa State students booing Smith and doing their classic in-arena singing and dancing to Mr. Brightside. During a stoppage, the Cyclone crowd went through the signature Juicy Wiggle. Haliburton danced along while standing near his Pacers teammates.

That, and many other behind the scenes moments, can be seen in the video below.