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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
DENVER (AP) -- Making 3-pointers almost at will, the Indiana
Pacers sank the Denver Nuggets with a fourth-quarter blowout.
|  | | Rik Smits scored 17 points for the Pacers. |
Travis Best scored 13 points in the final quarter and Sam
Perkins hit key 3-pointers as the Pacers ran their winning streak
to a season-high seven games with a 102-87 victory on Thursday
night.
Reggie Miller finished with 20 points, Rik Smits had 17 and Best
15 as Indiana beat the Nuggets for the eighth straight game.
Antonio McDyess led Denver with 21 points and nine rebounds, and
Raef LaFrentz had 15 points.
Indiana, leading 76-74 after three quarters, outscored Denver
26-13 in the final period.
Indiana was 12-of-26 from 3-point range, including four by
Perkins, while Denver was 4-of-13. Austin Croshere, Perkins, Best
and Chris Mullin all hit 3-pointers in the final quarter.
"We'll take as many as we can put up," Miller said. "We have
great shooters on our team. Why not use that to our advantage?"
Indiana coach Larry Bird said inside scoring by Smits, who got
12 points in the third quarter, set up the rain of 3s.
"They started gathering in the paint, and we got open looks,"
Bird said. "We took advantage of what they gave us.
"We played better defense, we made shots, we weren't selfish
and Travis controlled the tempo."
Best said the Pacers "made some stops defensively, executed on
the offensive end and found guys for shots. We felt if we broke
them down defensively at some point, we were going to stretch our
lead. And we did."
After a free throw by LaFrentz cut the deficit to 76-75, Best
hit a driving layup and followed with two free throws, and Miller
made a fast-break layup for an 82-75 lead.
LaFrentz hit a layup, but Miller countered with two free throws
and Austin Croshere hit the first of three straight 3-pointers by
the Pacers. Perkins and Best followed with 3s, and Best's 18-foot
jumper completed a 19-3 run, making it 95-78 with 5:22 left.
The Pacers also were 14-of-15 from the line compared to Denver's
13-of-23. The Nuggets have shot less than 60 percent from the line
in three straight games.
"When you play a team that is this good, you need every
advantage that you can have," Nuggets coach Dan Issel said. "At
one time we were shooting 41 percent (from the floor) and were
6-of-13 from the line, and we were only down three points. But over
the course of a game, shooting that way is going to cost you."
Asked to assess his team's fourth-quarter collapse, Issel said,
"They made most of their shots and we missed most of ours. That's
a pretty good place to start. We are not playing with the same
intensity that we played earlier in the year. We are in a rut."
McDyess, who scored 13 points in the first quarter, ignited an
early 8-0 run that saw the Nuggets claim a five-point lead. But
3-pointers by Miller and Mark Jackson brought the Pacers back.
Perkins hit three 3-pointers in a span of 2:23, highlighting an
11-0 flurry that produced a 43-35 lead in the second period. Denver
rookie James Posey scored the last five Denver points in the half,
including a 3-pointer at the buzzer to cut the deficit to 48-45.
Indiana briefly opened a six-point lead in the third quarter
thanks to Smits' 12 points in the period, but Denver's Nick Van
Exel scored 10 in the quarter to bring the Nuggets back.
Denver was only 1-for-7 from the field to open the fourth
quarter and finished the period 4-for-15.
Game notes
Indiana, sporting the best record in the Eastern
Conference, has won 15 of its last 17 games. ... Denver hasn't
beaten the Pacers since March 31, 1995. ... The Pacers' 93 percent
shooting from the line was a season high for a Denver opponent, as
was the Pacers' 12 3-pointers and 26 attempts. ... Van Exel had 12
points and 11 assists for his third straight double-double. He has
had at least 10 assists in eight straight games. ... Indiana's
Perkins (wrist) and Dale Davis (knee) were listed as day-to-day,
but both played.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Indiana Clubhouse
Denver Clubhouse
RECAPS
Toronto 101
Sacramento 89
Cleveland 90
Golden State 75
Detroit 101
Milwaukee 95
Miami 111
Houston 99
Minnesota 98
Portland 96
Utah 105
Dallas 92
Indiana 102
Denver 87
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