The Indiana Pacers are trying to match their longest road winning streak in franchise history, but Portland might not be the best place for them to do it.
Not only are the red-hot Trail Blazers on a four-game winning streak and have won eight of their last nine games, but the Pacers have lost 14 of their past 15 games in Portland. The only win during this stretch was on January 14, 2021, when there were no fans due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Pacers are hoping to match their franchise record of seven straight road wins, set at the start of the 2003-04 season, which was the same year Reggie Miller’s career was winding down in Indiana and Rick Carlisle was in his first stint as the Pacers’ coach.
Indiana is in position to tie the record thanks to a thrilling 112-111 road win over the Utah Jazz on Monday.
“It’s one of the best wins of the year considering the circumstances and how we shot the ball,” Carlisle said after the game.
The Pacers were down by 12 points midway through the fourth quarter but went on a 14-1 run to overtake the Jazz. This came despite being outrebounded 60-37 and hitting only 10 of 42 three-pointers.
“This speaks to the maturity and growth of our group,” said Tyrese Haliburton, the Pacers’ star. “Because the last couple of years, if we don’t make shots, we get blown out.”
Pascal Siakam scored 10 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, including a dunk with 5.1 seconds left that made it a two-possession game.
And just like that, the Pacers had an unlikely win.
“It was just hard to get to the hump throughout the game, let alone get over the hump,” Carlisle said. “If you’re watching the game as a Pacers fan, you’re thinking, ‘It’s not going to happen tonight.’ But our guys kept saying let’s hang around and give ourselves a chance.”
Indiana has now won four straight and 12 of its last 14 games, as they try again to beat Portland, where they haven’t won in front of fans since November 28, 2007.
Portland, however, is one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now. Just a couple of weeks ago, they were 15 games below .500, but they’ve won five double-digit games since then.
On Monday, the Trail Blazers defeated the Phoenix Suns 121-119 in overtime, completing a two-game sweep of Phoenix. They had also routed the Suns 127-108 on Saturday.
Deandre Ayton, who was the No. 1 overall pick by Phoenix in 2018, had a standout performance in the two games. He averaged 24.5 points and grabbed a season-high 20 rebounds on Monday, with nine of those coming on the offensive glass.
“When the shot goes up on our end, I had the chance to really chase these boards,” Ayton said after scoring more than 20 points for the fifth game in a row. “And let us have daggers and put us in position to win.”
Ayton also made five of six free throws in the final 7.8 seconds of overtime.
“I think this might have been D.A.’s best all-around game,” said Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups. “Everything, all across the board, and being able to close it out with the clutch free throws.”
Indiana’s center Myles Turner, who is dealing with an ankle injury, missed the game against Utah and is listed as questionable for the game in Portland.
The Pacers had beaten the Trail Blazers 121-114 at home on November 27. Siakam scored 29 points for Indiana, while Anfernee Simons had 30 for Portland.
