Coming off of a strong – but losing – first round playoff effort in 2011 against the Chicago Bulls, the Indiana Pacers came roaring back to begin the 2011-2012 NBA year. The team is experiencing its best early record in the previous eight years, but they still struggle against the better teams in the league.
But the Magic are a tough adversary that are 11-5 on the year at this point. And recent history is clearly on Orlando’s side. The Magic have defeated the Pacers in Indiana in every one of the previous three matchups between the two.
Both organizations come into this matchup with a 7-3 record over their previous ten contests. The Pacers have a 5-0 home record so far, while the Magic are 5-3 on the road. Look for Orlando to make a surprisingly strong showing after their disastrous 87-56 blowout to the Boston Celtics a few days ago.