Indiana showed who was the better team tonight with a convincing 107-95 win over Portland. Although not exactly a blowout, Indiana coach Coach Hitch and his players outplayed Portland from start to end. "I was hoping for a better outcome," said Portland coach Bob during a post-game interview. "But they just overpowered us, and there was nothing we could do to adjust. Coach Hitch's team was more talented and better-prepared, and it would have taken quite a bit of luck for us to overcome that."

The loss was tough on Portland fans, who had expected great things from their team after some offseason moves. "I think reality is starting to sink in," said one team. "We didn't expect to see other teams outplaying us this badly, but Indiana sure made their point."

Indiana was led by Borenstein (5 points, 27 boards, 1 assists, 2 blocks), Owens (24 points, 5 boards, 3 assists, a block), Cato (15 points, 1 assists, a block). Portland was led by Ortega (17 points, 0 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks), King (5 points, 10 assists, a steal, a block), Chapple (22 points, a steal).

Indiana are now 11-7 and 7-1 at home. They remain at #3 in the Central and advance to #5 overall in the Eastern Conference. After the loss, Portland are now 8-9. They remain at #4 in the Northwest and move down to #11 overall in the Western Conference.

box score Indiana* roster Portland roster