Los Angeles @ Indiana preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 5, 2019 ) L.A. Lakers 94, Indiana 136

The red-hot Los Angeles Lakers look for their eighth straight victory when they visit the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday. The Lakers are 3-0 on a five-game excursion to increase their road winning streak to 14 games, just two shy of the franchise record set in the 1971-72 season.

Los Angeles finishes the trip with a Thursday showdown against the Milwaukee Bucks - both teams are an NBA-best 24-3 - but first must keep their focus on a surprisingly good Indiana squad. The Lakers weren't exactly on top of their game Sunday, when they squeezed out a 101-96 win over the lowly Atlanta Hawks. The Pacers are thriving even though they have yet to see top player Victor Oladipo (knee) on the court this season but coach Nate McMillan is still in wait-and-see mode. "We're not where we want to be or where we need to be at the end of the season," McMillan told reporters. "(There's) a lot of basketball to be played. We'll see where we are again on Tuesday."

TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBATV, Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles), FS Indiana

ABOUT THE LAKERS (24-3): Los Angeles committed a season-worst 22 turnovers against the Hawks and only James (4-of-10) had the mark from 3-point range as the rest of the team was a meager 1-of-21. "We couldn't throw a quarter in the ocean tonight and we were turning the ball over," James said afterward. "Versus a young team you can't do that, you give them so many opportunities. Being resilient and relying on our defense, knowing that we can get stops in critical times, and just trying to execute on the other end." James recorded 32 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists and power forward Anthony Davis added 27 points and 13 rebounds while the rest of the squad combined for just 42 points.

ABOUT THE PACERS (18-9): Reserve guard Aaron Holiday scored 23 points -- his second-highest output of the season -- in Sunday's 107-85 home victory over the Charlotte Hornets and is averaging 18 points on 19-of-30 shooting over the past three games. Indiana received 55 points from its bench against the Hornets with the group combining for 31 of the team's 35 fourth-quarter points. "Those guys have been playing good since getting their opportunity," McMillan said of the reserves. "They've been a spark for us this short season, bringing energy to the game, a pace that speeds us up."

BUZZER BEATERS

1. The Lakers have dropped six straight road games against the Pacers with their last win in Indianapolis coming on March 15, 2013, when current coach Frank Vogel was Indiana's head man.

2. Indiana PF Domantas Sabonis had 12 points and 12 rebounds versus Charlotte for his 12th straight double-double.

3. Los Angeles F Kyle Kuzma (ankle) could miss his fourth straight game.

PREDICTION: Lakers 107, Pacers 105