NBA Roundup : Versace Shows Pacers How to Beat Up On Pistons, 113-99

Being a former assistant with the Detroit Pistons, Dick Versace, now coach of the Indiana Pacers, would know more than most about how to deal with his former club.

But beating the Pistons would nevertheless seem an unlikely accomplishment considering the Pacers’ 7-23 record going into Saturday night’s game.

Not only did the Pacers beat the Pistons, they did it convincingly at Indianapolis, 113-99, behind Chuck Pearson’s 30 points.

It was their third straight victory, the second under Versace, who was hired last Thursday.

“The lads did a nice job in a short period of time in absorbing a lot I threw at them,” he said.

The Pacers, leading from the opening minutes, built a 15-point lead after 3 quarters and widened it to 19 midway through the final period before Detroit rallied in the closing minutes.

Isiah Thomas made 2 free throws and a basket, and another basket by Joe Dumars cut the Pacers’ lead to 102-94 with 2 minutes left.

Indiana’s Vern Fleming, playing for the first time since missing 6 games with an ankle injury, made a 3-point play, and Wayman Tisdale and Scott Skiles added 4 points apiece in the final minute.

Cleveland 104, New York 96--Larry Nance blocked a team-record 11 shots and scored 24 points, while Ron Harper had 30 points and 11 rebounds as the Cavaliers ran their winning streak to 11 games by beating the Knicks at Richfield, Ohio.

The Cavaliers, troubled in the first half by the Knicks’ trapping defense, turned up their defensive pressure to hold off a New York rally in the fourth quarter.

Cleveland blocked 21 shots, also a team record, including 4 quick blocks after the Knicks got ro within 97-92 with just over 4 minutes left. Nance, whose 11 blocked shots are a career high, blocked 3 shots on consecutive New York possessions late in the game, and Harper blocked Mark Jackson’s layup with 2 minutes remaining.

Charlotte 107, Washington 104--Rex Chapman made a 3-point shot with 10 seconds left and Michael Holton added 2 free throws with 1 second remaining as the Hornets held off the Bullets at Charlotte.

The Hornets, 1-14 on the road, improved to 8-8 at home.

After Chapman’s 3-pointer put Charlotte ahead, 105-101, Ledell Eackles responded with a 3-pointer with 7 seconds left to get the Bullets within 1, but Holton’s free throws clinched the victory.

Philadelphia 96, Houston 95--Hersey Hawkins made a 3-point shot at the buzzer, leading the 76ers over the Rockets at Houston.

Hawkins took an inbounds pass with 1 second remaining, turned toward the basket and shot as the game ended. Hawkins made 12 of 18 shots and finished with a season-high 31 points.

A 10-foot baseline jumper by Akeem Olajuwon gave the Rockets a 95-93 lead with 9 seconds left. Philadelphia’s Charles Barkley drove the lane, but his shot fell short and Mike Gminski fell to the floor, grabbed the rebound and called timeout for the 76ers, who snapped a 4-game losing streak.

Milwaukee 107, Utah 89--Terry Cummings scored 25 points and Ricky Pierce had 13 of his 24 points in a decisive second quarter as the Bucks routed the Jazz at Milwaukee.

The game was delayed 75 minutes when the Bucks’ plane from Washington could not land in Milwaukee because of fog. The team landed in Grand Rapids, Mich., and took a 4-hour 45-minute bus ride to the Bradley Center.

Atlanta 103, New Jersey 93--Moses Malone scored 12 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter, leading the Hawks to victory over the Nets at Atlanta.

With the game tied, 78-78, Atlanta’s Glenn Rivers, who scored 7 of his 15 points in the final quarter, put the Hawks up for good when he connected with 7:23 left.

Denver 115, Dallas 94--Walter Davis scored 24 points to lead the Nuggets past the Mavericks at Denver, moving them into a first-place tie with Houston in the Midwest Division.

Alex English added 21 points and Michael Adams had 16 and extended his record streak to 74 consecutive games with a 3-point basket to end the second quarter.

Denver never trailed.

Phoenix 107, Miami 99--Tom Chambers scored 23 points, Eddie Johnson 20 and Armon Gilliam 19 as the Suns survived a late Miami rally for their 11th straight home victory at Phoenix.

Phoenix, 14-2 at home, saw a 15-point fourth-quarter lead dwindle to 6 points as the Heat made an 11-0 run. But the Suns held on to move within a half-game of the Lakers for the Pacific Division lead.

Seattle 129, Portland 123--Derrick McKey scored 28 points and the SuperSonics beat the Trail Blazers at Seattle for their 10th straight victory at home.

McKey, a second-year pro, scored 7 points during a 16-5 burst to start the second half.

Xavier McDaniel scored 29 points and Dale Ellis 27 for the Sonics.

San Antonio 104, Golden State 102--Rookie guard Vernon Maxwell hit a 22-foot jumper with 4 seconds left as the Spurs beat the Warriors at Oakland.

Maxwell finished with 20 points, and Willie Anderson had 36 points for the second game in a row, making 15 of 17 shots.

Chris Mullin scored 27 points for the Warriors.