Brand Leads 76ers Past Pacers 109-106 In OT
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Elton Brand scored 20 points and Lou Williams added 19 to help the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Pacers 109-106 in overtime Saturday night, stopping Indiana's winning streak at seven games.
Jrue Holiday scored 17 points and Andre Iguodala added 16 for the 76ers, who inched closer to clinching a playoff berth. The 76ers left the game needing just a win or a loss by Milwaukee to clinch a spot.
David West had a season-high 32 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Indiana. Tyler Hansbrough scored 17 points and Paul George added 16 for the Pacers, who could have locked up the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference with a win. Danny Granger, Indiana's top scorer this season, had four points on 2-for-12 shooting.
Philadelphia led 107-106 late in overtime when Indiana's George Hill shot a quick 3-pointer. Philadelphia came up with the ball in a scramble, and Holiday's breakaway dunk gave the 76ers a 109-106 lead with 12.4 seconds left. Indiana was called for a 5-second violation when George couldn't get the ball inbounds, but the Pacers then forced a jump ball, won the tip and called a timeout with 10.7 seconds left.
Granger missed a 3-pointer, and the Pacers couldn't get the ball back outside to try to tie the game.
Indiana fell behind 51-38 with 5:37 left in the second quarter before George got hot. He drained two 3-pointers to cut Indiana's deficit to 51-46. The Pacers continued their surge, and Hill's fadeaway at the buzzer gave Indiana a 54-53 lead. George scored 14 points in the quarter.
Philadelphia took control and led 81-74 at the end of the third quarter.
Consecutive layups by Hill cut Philadelphia's lead to 96-94, and Roy Hibbert tied the game on a tip-in with 2:28 to play. Two free throws by Thaddeus Young gave Philadelphia the lead again, but West's layup with 29.8 seconds left tied the game at 98.
Holiday missed, and Granger rebounded and called a timeout with 7.5 seconds left. George missed a jumper from near the free throw line as time expired, forcing overtime.
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