The Toronto Raptors will be going for a four-game season-series sweep of the Indiana Pacers on Sunday afternoon while trying to guarantee a winning five-game homestand.
The Raptors improved to 3-0 for the season against the Pacers with a 115-101 road victory on Jan. 14.
On the current homestand, Toronto has won two of the first three after defeating the depleted Chicago Bulls 123-107 on Thursday.
The Pacers have lost three straight after falling to the Milwaukee Bucks 105-99 on Friday in the opener of a six-game road trip.
The Raptors’ win over the Bulls came after they blew an 18-point lead and were outscored 34-22 in the fourth quarter on Wednesday in a 128-126 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Brandon Ingram reflected on the importance of the game against Chicago, scoring 22 of his 33 points in the first half.
“I knew the urgency that we had to have to sustain a win,” Ingram said. “I thought it was kind of a response from (Wednesday) night. My teammates did a good job of finding me and I stayed aggressive. We had talked about moving the ball before the game, and you saw everybody kind of feed off of each other, so that was kind of the mindset.”
Center Trayce Jackson-Davis could make his Raptors’ debut on Sunday after he was acquired from the Golden State Warriors. He is expected to offer some rebounding help and some size that the Raptors have missed with the absence of center Jakob Poeltl because of a strained lower back.
Toronto coach Darko Rajakovic said that Poeltl could return soon. Poeltl competed in a full-contact practice on Saturday and is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game.
“Obviously it’s day-to-day, but that’s the hope that we see him before the (All-Star) break,” Rajakovic said.
Poeltl has not played since Dec. 21 and his absence has hastened the development of Collin Murray-Boyles, who had 17 points and three blocks on Thursday despite dealing with a thumb injury.
“I give him a lot of credit,” Rajakovic said. “He’s having trouble dribbling the ball, catching the ball, (but) he’s playing through that.”
Murray-Boyles will continue to wear a thumb protector for five weeks.
Toronto’s Immanuel Quickley tweaked his ankle Saturday at practice, but it was not deemed serious.
The Pacers rallied with a 34-22 fourth quarter against the Bucks after struggling in the second and third quarters.
“Indecisiveness was a problem,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. “We turned down some shots that we should have taken in the rhythm and flow of the offense and the game during those two quarters.”
Indiana’s Andrew Nembhard scored 18 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter.
“We just talked to him about something that we saw with his shot, just a little adjustment,” Carlisle said. “And then he hit his next three and he got going. He’s a smart player. He can make adjustments like that. He was great down the stretch. His defense was really good during the whole game, too.”
The Pacers obtained Ivica Zubac and Kobe Brown in a trade with the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday but Carlisle said that neither will play until at least Tuesday against the New York Knicks.
Zubac could take longer because of an ankle injury.
“It’s more likely that his debut with us — assuming everything goes through — will probably be delayed because he had an ankle thing that happened in December,” Carlisle said.
