Field Level Media
Jan 15, 2021
Malcolm Brogdon and Domantas Sabonis combined for 48 points and the Indiana Pacers used a 33-10 blitz in the second quarter to take command en route to a 111-87 thumping of the host Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday night.
Of greater concern for Portland, though, was center Jusuf Nurkic breaking his right wrist. He exited in the third quarter after he fell, and he didn't come back into the game. It was unclear how long Nurkic would be sidelined.
The result ended Indiana's 11-game losing streak at Portland and was the Pacers' first at the Moda Center since November 2007.
Brogdon logged a game-high 25 points and Sabonis complemented him with 23 as the Pacers, short-handed after trading Victor Oladipo to the Houston Rockets, won a second straight on the road.
Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum had 22 points apiece for Portland, which had won four in a row but was playing the second night of a back-to-back set.
After the teams dueled to a 28-all tie through the game's first 13 minutes, the Pacers took the lead for good with a 12-0 burst that featured scoring by reserves only. Doug McDermott had seven of the 12 points.
After McCollum scored twice to get the Trail Blazers back within 40-32 at the 6:22 mark of the period, the Pacers heated up again, this time using a 19-2 flurry to open a 25-point lead.
Aaron Holiday ignited the run by scoring six of the first nine points.
Down 59-36 at the break, the Trail Blazers got no closer than 11 in the second half.
Both Brogdon and Sabonis shot 10-for-18 for the Pacers, who outgunned the Trail Blazers 47.8 percent to 36.8 percent.
Sabonis completed a double-double with a game-high 15 rebounds while teammate Myles Turner added 11 points and 10 rebounds. McDermott finished with 16 points and Justin Holiday had 11.
The Pacers dealt Oladipo to the Rockets as part of the four-team James Harden deal, finalized Thursday morning, that sent Caris LeVert to Indiana.
McCollum (4-for-10), Lillard (2-for-5) and Carmelo Anthony (2-for-5) combined for eight 3-pointers for Portland, but their teammates were 5-for-23 from beyond the arc.
Anthony finished with 10 points. Nurkic had five points and eight assists in 21 minutes before leaving.
--Field Level Media