Pacers stun Magic 128-126 as a 10.5 point underdog

Pascal Siakam (Google Images)

It has definitely been a National Basketball Association season that the Indiana Pacers would like to forget. Without Tyrese Haliburton with an Achilles injury, the Pacers are the worst team in the NBA at 16 wins and 56 losses for a winning percentage of .222. This poor result is only one season after representing the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals. 

On Monday, we saw why the Pacers supporting cast can be so special. In the process, Indiana upset Orlando 128-126 at the Kia Center in Orlando, Florida to snap a dreadful 16 game losing streak.

Power forward Pascal Siakam of Douala, Cameroon led the Pacers with 37 points. Four more Pacers reached double digits in points. Power forward Jarace Walker of New Freedom, Pennsylvania had 20 points, small forward Aaron Nesmith of Charleston, South Carolina had 19 points, and Canadian point guard Andrew Nembhard of Aurora, Ontario and point guard T.J. McConnell of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania had 13 points each. McConnell had his 13 points off the bench. Nembhard had a double-double as he had 14 assists.

It was an excellent first quarter and third quarter for the Pacers. Indiana outscored Orlando 34-24 in the opening 12 minutes, and outscored Orlando 44-31 in the first 12 minutes after halftime.

This was a significant loss for the Magic. They have lost five games in a row, and are a game and a half back of the Atlanta Hawks for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. Sixth place is rather important because you do not have to participate in the play-in tournament, which has completely ruined the 2025-26 NBA season. Stay tuned for that post later this week!