Trail Blazers 111, Pacers 102


Feb 28, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) takes a shot against Indiana Pacers forward Chase Budinger (10) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Portland defeats Indiana 111-102. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 28, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) takes a shot against Indiana Pacers forward Chase Budinger (10) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Portland defeats Indiana 111-102. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

INDIANAPOLIS — Guard Damian Leonard scored a game-high 33 points Sunday night, and the Portland Trail Blazers used 3-point shooting as the catalyst in a 111-102 victory against the struggling Indiana Pacers in Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

Portland (32-28), which has won 13 of its last 15 and 18 of 25, made 14 of 24 shots from 3-point range to sweep the two-game series with Indiana (31-28), which has lost three of its last four home games.

In the two victories against Indiana, Portland made 32 3-pointers.

Reserve guard Gerald Henderson’s 3-pointer — Portland’s 14th — with 5:37 remaining gave the Trail Blazers a 109-88 advantage, prompting a Pacers timeout.

Henderson and guard CJ McCollum each added 19 for the Trail Blazers, and 7-footer Meyers Leonard finished with 17.
Forward Al-Farouq Aminu scored 10.

Indiana got 18 points from guard Monta Ellis, 15 from forward Jordan Hill, 14 from guard George Hill and 11 from forward Paul George, who made only 4 of 15 field-goal attempts, including 0 of 4 from behind the arc. The Pacers made only 3 of 14 attempts from 3-point range.

Leonard scored 11 points in a 1:42 stretch to end the third quarter and begin the fourth, pushing the Trail Blazers into a 95-79 lead with 10:16 remaining. Back to back 3-pointers from McCollum and Lillard extended the Portland advantage to 103-83 with 7:56 to play.

After Indiana had pulled to within four, the Trail Blazers countered with a 22-6 run.

A three-point play and a 3-pointer from Ellis helped cut the Portland lead to 81-77 with 2:14 remaining in the third quarter, but the Trail Blazers finished the period on a 6-0 run, capped by a Leonard 3-pointer at the buzzer, to increase their advantage to 87-77 with 12 minutes to play.

Lillard scored 23 first-half points, including 20 in the first quarter, and McCollum added 14 before intermission, helping the Trail Blazers lead 65-54 through 24 minutes. Henderson came off the bench for 12 first-half points, making all six of his field-goal attempts.

Lillard, McCollum and Henderson were a collective 18 of 28 from the field (64.3 percent) during the first two quarters when the Trail Blazers led by as many as 14.

Portland shot 55.8 percent (24 of 43) from the field, made 12 of 14 free throws and out-rebounded Indiana 24-21.
Forward Myles Turner and Ellis each scored eight first-half points for the Pacers, who shot 45.8 percent (22 of 48).

NOTES: Indiana was without G/F C.J. Miles (strained left calf). … Indiana F Paul George began the day ranked fourth in the NBA in 3-pointers made with 157. … The Pacers were 3-3 in their previous six games, a stretch that included two losses to the Charlotte Hornets. … Through Saturday’s games, Portland was the NBA’s eighth-highest-scoring team at 103.5 points. … The Pacers ranked fourth in steals per game at 9.1 and were fifth in opponents’ 3-point field-goal percentage (.330). … The Blazers won the teams’ other meeting this season, 123-111 on Dec. 3 in Portland. … Through their Friday loss to Charlotte, Indiana was 7-8 in one-possession games.