Pacers edge Thunder for seventh straight win
INDIANAPOLIS -- Paul George had 21 points, including a clutch basket with 1:20 remaining, and the Indiana Pacers extended their season-best winning streak to seven with a 93-90 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night.
Russell Westbrook, who finished with 27 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists, missed two potential game-tying 3-pointers in the final 7.8 seconds, including one at the buzzer.
Jeff Teague added 17 points for Indiana (29-22), Glenn Robinson III had 14 and Myles Turner scored 10. The Pacers won despite shooting only 37.9 percent from the field.
Steven Adams contributed 15 points for the Thunder (30-23), Victor Oladipo had 14 and Andre Roberson finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
A Turner layup with 6:47 remaining gave Indiana an 84-75 lead. A 3-pointer by Westbrook, two Oladipo free throws and a Westbrook layup cut the Pacers' lead to 91-90 with 2:03 left.
Including Rodney Stuckey's layup at the buzzer, Indiana outscored Oklahoma City 32-18 in the third quarter, limiting the Thunder to seven field goals on 24 attempts to take a 73-70 lead through 36 minutes. The Pacers were 11 of 22 from the field in the third quarter.
The Thunder limited George to 1-of-8 shooting from the field during a first half in which Oklahoma City outrebounded Indiana 31-22 and led 52-41 through 24 minutes.
Indiana shot only 30.4 percent from the floor (14 of 46) in the opening half and turned the ball over six times, leading to 12 Thunder points.
Robinson III led Indiana with nine first-half points, Teague had eight and George scored six.
Westbrook had eight points, 11 rebounds and seven assists in the first half. Adams had 12 points and five rebounds and Oladipo scored eight points.
NOTES: Indiana F Thaddeus Young sat out as he continues to rehab his sprained left wrist. ... Oklahoma City entered with a two-game winning streak, including Sunday's 105-99 victory over Portland, a game in which G Russell Westbrook scored 42 points. ... The Pacers came in with a season-best six-game winning streak, most recently defeating Detroit on Saturday night. ... The Thunder rank fourth in rebounding (45.8) and fifth in opponents' rebounding (41.8). ... The Pacers lead the NBA in opponents' turnovers per game (15.7) and are second in free throw percentage (81.8). ... Indiana was attempting to sweep the season series from the Thunder for the first time since 2008-2009. ... Thunder starting G Victor Oladipo played college ball at Indiana University, only 40 miles from Indianapolis.