Pacers Stunned By Blazers In O.T. 97-95

[Pooh]

By Johnnie Clay – Pacers Insider
December 4, 2003 - 12:45 AM

Damon Stoudamire made clutch shots at the end of regulation and overtime as the Trail Blazers capped a long day with a 97-95 victory over the Indiana Pacers, the Eastern Conference's best team.

The Pacers, who've lost two out of their last three games, fall to 15-4, still good enough to maintain their stranglehold on the Eastern Conference's best record.

It appeared as if the Pacers were going to pull out a dramatic win when Reggie Miller hit a 26ft three-pointer with under 30 seconds left, but the Blazers' Damon Stoudamire stepped to the forefront.

Stoudamire, who has had his share of off-court troubles as well, came through on the court. He drilled a three-pointer to cut the deficit to 87-86 with 12 seconds left in the fourth quarter, then forced overtime at 88-88 with a driving layup with 2.2 seconds to go.

The Pacers however had one last chance to win the game in regulation but Reggie Miller's last second shot came up well short.

Overtime featured five lead changes, the last on Stoudamire's 17-footer from the right wing that made it 96-95 with 17 seconds to play. He ended up with the ball as Pacers forward Ron Artest slipped to the floor and threw away a pass and made a free throw with 1.1 seconds left.

Zack Randolph, who before the game issued a formal apology to his team mates based on his recent behavor, led the Blazers with 34 points and 9 rebounds.

For the Pacers, Ron Artest (who missed Monday's game with lower back spasms) had 21 points 6 boards and 5 assists to lead the team in scoring.

Jemaine O'Neal had 18 points and 10 rebounds in a losing effort. Al Harrington and Anthony Johnson came off the bench and scored 19 and 14 points respectively.

The Pacers now fly up to Seattle, where they face the Supersonics. Just last month, the Pacers defeated the Sonics, 101-78 at Conseco Fieldhouse.

Gametime is at 10:30 pm (EST)

[God31]

Tuff loss. I think Portland got lucky because they played hard knowing that their GM won't take any more crap out of the team by dealing Bonzi Wells away. I think the players had tons to prove and did it vs Indiana. It's only 1 game out of 82, hopefully we can rebound next game!