Pacers 104, Mavericks 99
C.J. Miles drained 5-of-6 shots from behind the arc, including a big one late in the fourth quarter, en route to a game-high 28 points as Indiana edged visiting Dallas.
George Hill and Roy Hibbert each contributed 14 points for the Pacers, who moved within one-half game of Brooklyn for eighth place in the Eastern Conference. David West and Rodney Stuckey chipped in 10 points apiece for Indiana, which won for only the second time in nine games and finished a two-game sweep of the Mavericks this season.
Chandler Parsons led the way by scoring 27 to go along with 10 rebounds, but missed a 3-pointer that could have tied the game in the final seconds for Dallas. Dirk Nowitzki scored 19 while Rajon Rondo had 17 points and 10 assists and Tyson Chandler grabbed 11 boards for the Mavericks, who have lost four of their last five.
Rondo’s three-point play tied the game at 89 before Hill drained consecutive 3-pointers for a six-point edge with 5:13 remaining. Parsons scored six as Dallas rallied to tie the game again at 97, but Hibbert made two free throws and Miles’ 3-pointer with one minute left gave the Pacers a 102-97 lead to give them the cushion they needed.
Indiana led by eight early in the second quarter before the Mavericks ran off 30 of the next 44 points – seven from Nowitzki – for a eight-point bulge before settling for a 61-55 edge at intermission. Hibbert’s basket ignited an 8-0 burst that gave the Pacers a two-point lead late in the third quarter before going into the fourth down 79-78.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Dallas G Monta Ellis, the team’s leading scorer, missed the game with a right lower-leg injury he sustained Friday against San Antonio and G J.J. Barea (left ankle) also sat out. … The Pacers also beat the Mavericks 111-100 in Dallas on Nov. 24. … Indiana, which improved to 19-18 at home, made 10-of-17 from 3-point range and shot 50 percent from the field overall.