Indiana Pacers (23-18) vs. Portland Trail Blazers (11-29)
January 19, 2024 10:00 pm EDT
The Line: Portland Trail Blazers +4.5; Over/Under: +237.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Indiana Pacers and the Portland Trail Blazers duke it out at the Moda Center on Friday night. Here’s a Pacers vs Trail Blazers prediction.
Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers have been in decent form as they’ve won four of their past six games overall and they will be looking to keep it going after outlasting the Kings in a 126-121 road win last night. Bennedict Mathurin led the team with 25 points on 11 of 21 shooting, TJ McConnell added 20 points with 10 assists on nine of 14 shooting while Myles Turner chipped in with 18 points. As a team, the Pacers shot 55 percent from the field and 13 of 33 from the 3-point line as they took control of the contest with 70 points in a hot start, before they made a final push in the fourth quarter to lead by 16 points. The Pacers will face the Suns after this game.
Indiana Pacers Team Facts
- The Pacers have lost each of their last eight road games against Northwest Division opponents.
- The Pacers have failed to cover the spread in each of their last seven road games on the second leg of a back-to-back.
- Nine of the Pacers’ last 10 road games have gone UNDER the total points line.
Portland Trail Blazers
Meanwhile, the Portland Trail Blazers have been in poor form as they’ve lost seven of their last nine games overall, but they will be eager to build some momentum after snapping a four-game slide with a 105-103 win over the Nets on Wednesday. Jerami Grant led the way with 30 points on 14 of 26 shooting, Anfernee Simons added 20 points, Duop Reath added 17 points while Malcolm Brogdon tallied 16 points with six assists. As a team, the Trail Blazers shot 48 percent from the field and nine of 27 from the 3-point line as they looked to be in trouble when they trailed by nine points at the start of the fourth quarter, before they rallied all the way back and stole the game on a game winning shot at the buzzer from Simons.
Portland Trail Blazers Team Facts
- The Trail Blazers have lost each of their last eight games following a home win.
- The Trail Blazers have failed to cover the spread in each of their last eight games as home underdogs against Central Division opponents.
- Each of the Trail Blazers’ last eight night games against Eastern Conference opponents have gone UNDER the total points line.
Pacers vs Trail Blazers prediction
The Pacers are still shorthanded with Tyrese Haliburton, Aaron Nesmith and Andrew Nembhard are all out and there is no timetable for Pascal Siakam’s first game with his new team. The Trail Blazers were on an ugly four-game skid before they snapped out of it with a thrilling win at the buzzer over the slumping Nets on Wednesday and the good news is that they should have Deandre Ayton back in the lineup. The Pacers are playing this one on zero days’ rest after last night’s gritty win over the Kings, but they’ve clearly been the team in better form recently and I think they get the job done at the short line on the road.
