Siakam scores 37 as Pacers end record 16-game slide with 128-126 victory at Orlando

Ariana Brown12 days ago · 126 views

Siakam scores 37 as Pacers end record 16-game slide with 128-126 victory at Orlando image

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Pascal Siakam scored 37 points and blocked Paolo Banchero’s attempted layup in the final seconds Monday night to help the Indiana Pacers end their franchise-record 16-game losing streak with a 128-126 win over the Orlando Magic.

Banchero scored 39 points for the Magic, who have lost five straight.

Banchero drove to the basket with a chance to tie the game after Orlando won a jump ball with 6.4 seconds left. But 7-foot-1 Jay Huff and the 6-9 Siakam were under the basket, and Banchero could not get the shot over them.

Jarace Walker had 20 points for the Pacers, and Aaron Nemith added 19. Andrew Nembhard, who hit a 3-pointer with 1:33 remaining for Indiana’s final points, finished with 13 points, 14 assists and seven rebounds.

The Pacers, who entered with a .453 field-goal percentage, third-worst in the NBA, shot 55% overall and made 16 of 35 3-point shots (45.7%) in winning for the first time since Feb. 11.

Indiana grabbed a 109-97 lead early in the fourth quarter when Siakam and T.J. McConnell scored on three combined layups in a span of 39 seconds, the third coming after McConnell’s backcourt steal.

Indiana still led by 12 when Siakam hit two free throws with 3:36 left, but the Magic scored nine straight points to get back in it.

Desmond Bane had 14 of his 17 points in the second half for the Magic. He added seven assists.

Magic guard Jalen Suggs missed his 24th game of the season, this one with an illness, and guard Anthony Black missed a ninth straight game with an abdominal strain.