Local businesses enjoying boom generated by Pacers playoff watch parties

INDIANAPOLIS — The Pacers’ run to the NBA Finals has created big business for sports bars in central Indiana — most of which have been packed throughout the postseason.

In Fletcher Place, The Dugout is making a name for itself as the place to watch the game if you can’t get into Gainbridge to see it yourself.

The Dugout, a longtime neighborhood bar on Virginia Avenue, has become a go-to destination for fans who can’t snag a ticket to Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

“It’s completely full — and I mean completely full,” said Erin Butterworth, the day bartender at The Dugout. “Standing room only … and we do our best to get to everybody.”

Inside, there’s the old side of the Dugout, the new side, the warehouse, and the patio. When the Pacers are on the screens, hundreds of fans pack every inch of the property to watch the Pacers make history while surrounded by fellow fans of a franchise that had previously not made the NBA Finals since 2000.

“I mean, this is the bar to be at,” Butterworth said. “It’s the perfect Fletcher-area bar. Everybody goes here. It’s the neighborhood bar.”

Butterworth said Pacers watch parties are breaking records in attendance and revenue.

“A usual Thursday night, we might do $5,000 to $6,000 in sales,” Butterworth said. “This past Thursday, we were at $28,000 to $29,000. So, it’s jumping.”

Four hundred people — that’s the cutoff at the Dugout before the “at capacity” sign is placed at the entrance. But even if you can’t get in, you’ll certainly hear — and probably feel — when the place starts rocking during Pacers games.

“It’s top tier,” Butterworth said. “So much so that we were on SportsCenter a few weeks back because of just how much energy we brought when (Tyrese) Haliburton hit that winning free throw.”