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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Once again, the Cleveland Cavaliers are the hottest team in the NBA. With a couple more wins, people might even start noticing them again.
"We know it in here, we know what we have. We've got something special," Chris Gatling said after the Cavs used runs of 9-0 and 10-1 in the fourth quarter to defeat the Indiana Pacers 103-95 Friday night.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Andre Miller carried the their team in
the fourth quarter, scoring 16 of Cleveland's final 19 points as the Cavs won their fifth in a row.
The winning streak is currently the longest in the NBA, and it's
even better than the four-game streak that the Cavs started the
season with.
"We don't have a pretty team or a team that people talk about in the papers or on ESPN, but that's good for us," Clarence
Weatherspoon said. "We've got a lot of guys who mix and match
well, and we've got a big center. With that combination, all we
have to do is play hard and get after people."
Ilgauskas finished with 24 points and Miller had 17 for the
Cavaliers, who snapped Indiana's four-game home winning streak.
Ilgauskas made a pair of turnaround jumpers from opposite corners to key the victory and fire up the Cavs' bench. After the second one dropped to make it 100-93 with 1:21 left, Gatling turned to the fans, waved a white towel, and shouted "You can't stop him!"
"They were tough shots and he knocked them down, but 'Z' does
that a lot," Gatling said. "If he could do that again, we'll
never know. But those were great shots."
Jalen Rose scored 24 points and Reggie Miller added 20 for the
Pacers, whose offense stumbled late in the game on account of
Cleveland's defense. Indiana scored only once from the field in the
final 8{ minutes, that basket coming only after Jermaine O'Neal
grabbed two offensive rebounds.
O'Neal's basket gave Indiana a 92-90 lead with 5:05 left, but
the Cavs scored the next six points. After O'Neal made one of two
from the line with 2:31 left, Ilgauskas hit his back-to-back corner
jumpers to seal the victory and end Cleveland's seven-game losing
streak against the Pacers.
"We always believe in ourselves, we're probably the only ones
that believe in us, but that's fine with us," Ilgauskas said. "It
was huge for us to get this win because they're a tough team and
difficult to beat in this building."
Rose, who averaged 45.5 minutes in Indiana's previous two games,
got his first rest of the night at the start of the second quarter.
But just three minutes later -- after the Pacers' one-point deficit
had ballooned to eight -- Rose re-entered and proceeded to score 13
points over the rest of the quarter as Indiana closed the half with
a 28-15 run to lead 57-54 at intermission.
The Cavs missed their first six shots of the second half and
fell behind 65-56 on a 3-pointer by Reggie Miller.
But Cleveland kept its deficit in single digits for the rest of
the quarter, and Andre Miller finally gave the Cavs their first lead since the second quarter by scoring the final six points in a
9-0 run that put Cleveland ahead 90-88 with 6:38 left.
Cleveland outscored Indiana 28-14 in the fourth quarter.
Game notes
The Cavaliers placed rookie center Chris Mihm on the
injured list with a sprained ankle and activated forward J.R. Reid,
who has not played this season because of tendinitis in both knees.
Reid did not play. ... Asked if he'd ever be interested in taking
Bob Knight's old coaching job at Indiana University, Pacers coach
Isiah Thomas answered, "Yes." ... Jonathan Bender played six
shaky first-half minutes, shooting an airball from 3-point range
that missed by 2 feet. ... The Pacers dropped to 0-5 when allowing
100 points or more.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Cleveland Clubhouse
Indiana Clubhouse
RECAPS
Cleveland 103
Indiana 95
Dallas 112
Philadelphia 94
Charlotte 103
Washington 89
Sacramento 104
Boston 81
Utah 89
New York 58
Minnesota 99
Detroit 90
Atlanta 85
Chicago 74
Milwaukee 104
Toronto 97
LA Clippers 98
Phoenix 88
Portland 106
Orlando 96
Seattle 99
Miami 81
LA Lakers 98
Vancouver 76
FROM
ATHLETESDIRECT
Reggie Miller Official Site
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