3rd Quarter Report
The Pacers are on the road but looking no worse for wear. They have jumped out to a 96-86 lead against the Pistons.
The Pacers came into the contest with some extra motivation after the defeat they were dealt the last time these two teams faced off. We’ll see if they’re able to flip the script or if it’ll just be more of the same.
Who’s Playing
Indiana Pacers @ Detroit Pistons
Current Records: Indiana 22-19, Detroit 21-19
How To Watch
- When: Thursday, January 16, 2025 at 7 p.m. ET
- Where: Little Caesars Arena — Detroit, Michigan
- TV: FanDuel SN – Detroit
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $11.75
What to Know
The Indiana Pacers are taking a road trip to face off against the Detroit Pistons at 7:00 p.m. ET on Thursday at Little Caesars Arena. The Pacers are looking to tack on another W to their four-game streak on the road.
The Pacers are probably headed into the matchup with a chip on their shoulder considering the Cavaliers just ended the team’s six-game winning streak on Tuesday. They took a 127-117 hit to the loss column at the hands of Cleveland.
Pascal Siakam put forth a good effort for the losing side as he went 10 for 16 en route to 23 points plus seven rebounds.
Even though they lost, the Pacers were working as a unit and finished the game with 30 assists. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they’ve now posted at least 27 assists in four consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, the Pistons hadn’t done well against the Knicks recently (they were 1-9 in their previous ten matchups), but they didn’t let the past get in their way on Monday. The Pistons snuck past the Knicks with a 124-119 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for Detroit.
Cade Cunningham and Malik Beasley were among the main playmakers for the Pistons as the former had 36 points and the latter went 6 for 8 from beyond the arc en route to 22 points. Cunningham is becoming a predictor of the Pistons’ success: when he posts at least 20 points the team is 8-3 (and 13-16 when he doesn’t).
Indiana’s defeat ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 22-19. As for Detroit, they are on a roll lately: they’ve won seven of their last eight matches, which provided a massive bump to their 21-19 record this season.
The Pacers are hoping to beat the odds on Thursday, as the experts think they’re headed for a loss. They might be worth a quick bet since they’re sitting on a four game streak of covering the spread when playing on the road.
The Pacers might still be hurting after the devastating 130-106 loss they got from the Pistons in their previous matchup back in November of 2024. Can the Pacers avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We’ll find out soon enough.
Odds
Detroit is a slight 2.5-point favorite against Indiana, according to the latest NBA odds.
The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 2.5-point spread, and stayed right there.
The over/under is 227.5 points.
See NBA picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.
Series History
Indiana has won 7 out of their last 10 games against Detroit.
- Nov 29, 2024 – Detroit 130 vs. Indiana 106
- Oct 23, 2024 – Indiana 115 vs. Detroit 109
- Mar 20, 2024 – Indiana 122 vs. Detroit 103
- Feb 22, 2024 – Indiana 129 vs. Detroit 115
- Dec 11, 2023 – Indiana 131 vs. Detroit 123
- Nov 24, 2023 – Indiana 136 vs. Detroit 113
- Apr 07, 2023 – Detroit 122 vs. Indiana 115
- Mar 13, 2023 – Detroit 117 vs. Indiana 97
- Mar 11, 2023 – Indiana 121 vs. Detroit 115
- Oct 22, 2022 – Indiana 124 vs. Detroit 115
Read the full article here
