Portland Trail Blazers (34-36) beat Indiana Pacers (15-55) 127-119 on the road on Wednesday, March 18.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Trail Blazers had the better start, winning the first 37-33 to lead by 4 after one. The Trail Blazers kept the pressure on with a 42-29 second quarter, carrying a 17-point lead into halftime.
The Trail Blazers won the third 26-24 to create some separation, taking a 19-point lead into the fourth. The Pacers took the fourth 33-22; the Trail Blazers held on for a 127-119 regulation win.
What decided it
The Trail Blazers grabbed 43.1% of their own misses, while the Pacers recovered 25%. The Trail Blazers made 20.8 free throws per 100 field-goal attempts, compared with 16.5 for the Pacers. The second chances kept adding up.
The Pacers did win one battle, shooting: eFG% of 57.1% against 52.5%. The Trail Blazers made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 102 possessions per team, the Trail Blazers produced 125.2 points per 100 possessions to 117.3 for the Pacers.
Who made the difference
Donovan Clingan was the game's biggest individual force for POR: 28 pts, 13 reb, 2 ast on 10-19 shooting. His Game Score of 25.6 led everyone. His team was +8 with him on the floor.
Jalen Slawson led the Pacers with 17 pts, 7 reb, 4 ast, 3 blk on 6-10 shooting, good for a 19.2 Game Score.
Donovan Clingan (28 pts, 13 reb, 2 ast) and Deni Avdija (32 pts, 11 reb, 5 ast) each recorded a double-double.
What it means
The pre-game Win Meter had it close to a coin flip, at about 64% for the Trail Blazers.
Across the last 3 meetings in our records, Portland Trail Blazers lead 2-1.
The Trail Blazers are now 34-36, and the Pacers are 15-55. The Trail Blazers last five before this game: W-L-W-L-W.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.