Coming off of a formidable – but losing – playoff effort last year against the Bulls, the Indiana Pacers came roaring back to start off the 2011-2012 year. The squad is going through its greatest early record in the prior eight years, but are still troubled against the more adept squads in the league. While they are 11-4 so far, just four of those victories are against squads with records above .500.

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With the Magic arriving to visit on Tuesday, January 24, the Pacers will have a better task on their hands, and they are going to need the home court advantage tonight. Indiana is undefeated at home this year and will look to prolong their record to 6-0. If they are able to pull out a win, it’ll be the 1st time the squad has begun a year with 6 consecutive home victories since the 2002-2003 year.

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But the Magic are a fearsome foe who are 11-5 on the year so far. And the recent past is all on Orlando’s side. The Magic have beat the Pacers in Indiana in all the prior 3 competitions between the 2. Actually, Orlando has won these competitions on the road in Indianapolis by around 13 points. The newest contest between the 2 was January 26, 2011.

The Pacers will also have to find a method to deal with Magic celebrity Dwight Howard. Howard has directed the squad to an 11-3 record over Indiana, and he has put up double-doubles in each one of these contests. In spite of the challenges ahead for the Pacers, the sportsbook shows them as the -3 faves to eliminate the Magic. The total is established at 182.5.

Both squads come into this game with a 7-3 record over their last 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 amazingly formidable showing after their disastrous 87-56 loss to the Celtics a handful of days ago.