------ CJ McCollum scores 28 points in his season debut as the Portland Trail Blazers improve to 2-0 with a 114-96 win over the Indiana Pacers.
CJ McCollum showed no rust while making his debut against the Pacers in Indiana. McCollum scored 28 points and seven rebounds while going 12-for-18 from the floor. Damian Lillard added 18 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists and Evan Turner was solid with 17 points off the bench on 7-for-12 shooting. Al-Farouq Aminu led the charge defensively while finishing with 16 points and 16 rebounds.
The Blazers followed up their win over the Sun on Wednesday with another strong performance on the defensive end of the floor. The Blazers held the Pacers to just 44.9% shooting including just 4-for-18 from three-point range and limited them to 44 points in the second half.
The only concern on the night was Jusuf Nurkic. The Blazers center committed six turnovers and five fouls. In two games, Nurkic has scored just 16 points and committed 11 turnovers.
The Blazers hard work continued to payoff on the glass tonight with a 51-39 edge in rebounding after dominating the Suns in the opener 55-37.
Chad's Take- This was a big win. The Blazers won just 16 games on the road last season and they already have two to start the year. Terry Stotts preached the importance of a fast start and his guys have responded. There has been great balance in the first two wins of the year. Evan Turner was strong off the bench with 17 points and Pat Connaughton added eight points including 2-for-3 from three-point range. The Blazers are winning with defense and there were times last year when I never thought I would ever say that. Props to the guys for giving a consistent effort on defense in back to back games. That is the kind of work that will lead to good things for this group.