The Indiana Pacers in past years would, once they held a third quarter lead, more often than not emerge victorious. Tonight they almost let a big lead get away, as they built a sizable third period lead then held on for dear life as they slipped past the Portland Trail Blazers 95-89 at the Rose Garden in Portland.Portland went up by as many as 9 early in the game after guard Brandon Roy’s 3-pointer and consecutive layups by forward Travis Outlaw made it 22-13 in the first quarter. Indiana kept up with the Blazers and Pacers forward Mike Dunleavy tied it with a 3-pointer and G Jamaal Tinsley made a pair of free throws to put Indiana ahead. Both teams would trade leads until the Blazers’ Roy tip-in gave Portland a 44-40 lead. After the Pacers’ Dunleavy made a layup to narrow the gap, Portland F LaMarcus Aldridge hit a jumper to give the Blazers a 46-42 lead at halftime.

Indiana would begin the 3rd quarter with a 17-0 run that would give them a 57-49 lead; Pacers F Danny Granger made a 3-pointer, widening Indiana’s lead to 67-55 at the end of 3 periods. The Blazers’ Outlaw would help narrow the Pacers’ lead to 89-86 with a jumper with less than a minute left to go in the game, but the Pacers’ Tinsley would reciprocate with a jumper of his own with 24.9 seconds left, putting the Pacers up 91-86 and sealing the win.

Indiana was led by Granger with 23 points, while Dunleavy added 20 with 11 rebounds; Tinsley, despite going 4-for-16, contributed 15 with 6 rebounds and 10 assists. Jeff Foster had a nice game, pitching in with 11 points and grabbing 17 boards. Portland had 5 players in double-figures, led by Outlaw with 26 points; Aldridge added 22 with 9 rebounds, while Roy chipped in 10 and 10 boards. Indiana (8-8) travels north up Interstate 5 to take on the Seattle Supersonics on Friday night, while Portland (5-10) flies to Dallas to challenge the Mavericks, also on Friday.