The Pacers have been great, decent, mediocre and bad during recent visits to play the Blazers and the results have often been the same…a loss. The Pacers moved to 1-12 in their last 13 trips to what is now the Moda Center after taking a 131-11 loss to the Blazers. I actually entertained the idea that since this was the one year the Blazers were heavy favorites to win, the Pacers would probably find a way to flip the script and earn a W.

Uh…nope.

The Pacers started out in good shape with Nembhard, Nesmith and Siakam all available, ending the first quarter tied at 30-30. But then after continuing to go back and forth for half of the second quarter, the Blazers ended up outscoring the Pacers by 17 points in the second quarter, fueled by a 18-2 run that included most of the damage done with Siakam and Nembhard on the floor. That stretch of about four minutes decided the game.

Portland scored 18 of their 56 points in the pain in the second quarter as the Pacers continue struggling keeping opponents from where they want to get shots. Siakam finished with a team high 22 points while Nembhard added 14 points and 9 assists. After the half, the Blazers maintain a big double-digit lead throughout the second half. There would be no runs by the Pacers to threaten a comeback, instead settling for some solid stretches of bucket swapping with the Blazers.

Speaking of losing streaks, the Pacers have done a lot of that lately if you haven’t noticed. They are now riding a nine game losing streak since the All-Star break, and the 131 points given up to the Blazers is the sixth time in the last eight games the opponent has scored at least 130. Considering the other two losses were in the 120s, the average points allowed for the last 8 games is 130.8 points.

The second half in Portland saw TJ McConnell leave after tweaking (again) his hamstring and Jarace Walker do the same after tweaking an ankle. McConnell has been ruled out for Tuesday in Sacramento while Walker is probable, so should at least give it a go. Nembhard is listed as doubtful for the Kings and Siakam is out resting a knee sprain.

The Kings beat the Bulls on Sunday to join the Pacers with 15 wins, tied for the worst win total in the league. The Kings have one extra loss with gives them a half game advantage over the Pacers in the lottery standings. Needless to say, the intrigue of the two worst teams playing each other with minimal incentive to win should make this matchup interesting, if not comical to watch.

The Kings have a loaded injury report, as well with Domas Sabonis, Keegan Murray, De’Andre Hunter (eye) and Zach LaVine (pinky) among the players out against the Pacers with only Murray expected to return before the season ends. Goodness. Oh, and if you thought the Pacers may be favored to win this one, well, think, again.

Where: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, CA

When: Tuesday, March 10, 2026 – 10:00 p.m. ET

TV: FanDuel Sports Network

Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan

Odds: Pacers +3.5

Pacers: Kam Jones, Aaron Nesmith, Ben Sheppard, Jarace Walker, Jay Huff

Kings: Russell Westbrook, Nique Clifford, Daeqwan Plowden, Precious Achiuwa, Maxime Raynaud

Pacers: Jarace Walker (ankle) – probable, Andrew Nembhard (back) – doubtful, Pascal Siakam (knee) – out, TJ McConnell (hammy) – out, Ivica Zubac (ankle) – out, Johnny Furphy (knee) – out, Tyrese Haliburton (Achilles) – out

Kings: Dylan Cardwell (ankle) – out, De’Andre Hunter (eye) – out, Zach LaVine (pinky) – out, Domas Sabonis (knee) – out, Keegan Murray (ankle) – out