Pacers fall 92-89 to Denver as Andre Miller rules crunch time
By CHRIS GOFF
ISL Correspondent
INDIANAPOLIS – The oldest player on the court swung the game like he used to in his heyday, showing his greener teammates how to complete a road victory in the process.
Thirty-six-year-old Andre Miller scored eight points and added an assist in a 10-0 run in the final 3 minutes, spurring the Denver Nuggets to a 92-89 victory over the Indiana Pacers Friday night. George Hill missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer that could have sent the game to overtime as Indiana lost for only the second time in six games.
Miller finished with 15 points and eight assists and took over at the end on a night Denver’s starting guards struggled mightily. The 13-year veteran played 8 of his 25 minutes in the fourth quarter and scored six straight after the Nuggets had fallen behind 85-82 with 3:31 remaining.
He has that old-man knack, Denver coach George Karl said. He knows how to get shots down the stretch better than some of our younger guys. That was fun.
Denver (10-10) won for the first time in five tries on the road. Corey Brewer and JaVale McGee scored 20 points apiece, teaming with Miller to help the Nuggets’ bench outscore Indiana’s by a 55-12 margin.
Their bench was better than their starters, Indiana coach Frank Vogel said. Our bench had a great night (against Portland Wednesday), and a tough night tonight.
Indiana (10-10) was led by David West with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Paul George had a game-high 22 points, including 18 in the second half. Hill had a double-double with 15 points and 10 assists but missed a desperation 3 while trying to draw a foul at the end.
With 7 seconds left and the Pacers trailing 92-89, Hill blocked Ty Lawson’s 3-point attempt. West gathered the rebound and Hill rushed up the court, briefly driving inside the arc before dribbling back outside. Off a pick, Hill set up on the right wing, leaning in to draw minor contact from Lawson as the defender flew in front of the play. The crowd booed as the shot bounced off the rim and no foul was called.
I maybe should’ve called timeout, Hill said. It’s my fault. They disrupted a lot of things late. I figured that fast break might be our best shot.
Vogel said a timeout would not have helped.
In a scramble situation that’s where you get your most open looks, he said.
George made a 3 to push Indiana ahead 85-82. That’s when Miller, who ranks 10th in league history in assists, took over.
He made two free throws before scoring in transition on a lay-in just out of the reach of West. After West threw away a post-entry pass, Miller made a jumper from the free-throw line.
Take one thing away, he went to another, Hill said. He’s got veteran know-how.
Miller won a battle for a long rebound and alertly tossed ahead to McGee, who broke away for an easy dunk that put Denver ahead 90-85 and caused Vogel to call time out with 1:38 left.
After Hill missed a 3, Miller completed his game-changing sequence by driving around Sam Young to bank in a 14-footer. Down seven with 1 minute left, Indiana would never recover.
He’s drinking from the fountain of youth, said Lawson, who scored two points on 1-for-10 shooting. He was coming down and getting buckets, getting assists. He’s winning games for us.
Denver led 51-50 at halftime behind 16 from McGee and 12 from Brewer. The Nuggets opened the second quarter on an 11-4 run to go ahead for the first time since leading 2-0. But West took advantage of smaller defenders, scoring 16 points and shooting a perfect 7-for-7 in the first half. George had just four points and shot 2-for-7 before coming alive after intermission.
Indiana shot 12 for 20 (.600) in the opening period to lead 28-22. The Pacers led by as many as 10, but Denver stayed close by scoring all 22 of its points in the paint. The Nuggets outscored Indiana 54-28 in the paint overall.
That was pretty much the difference in the game, Vogel said. They had a great plan, penetrating the seams, drawing help and finding guys on the interior.
Denver led 69-68 after the third quarter but struggled to get open looks as Indiana went on an 11-2 run midway through the fourth capped by George’s 3. Roy Hibbert, Hill and Lance Stephenson also scored in the spurt, but instead of triggering another Pacers win, all it did was set up Miller for his heroics.
Andre finished for us, said Andre Iguodala, the other half of Denver’s usually strong backcourt duo. I played with him for two years (in Philadelphia) and I’ve seen that calm about him before when it’s needed.
