Miller Drops His Guard, Ends Slump for Pacers

Larry Brown shuffled his lineup and the Indiana Pacers broke out of their recent funk.

The moves seemed to help Reggie Miller, who shifted to small forward and snapped out of a shooting slump Sunday by making nine of 19 shots and scoring 27 points in a 105-96 victory over Toronto at Indianapolis.

Miller started at small forward because Derrick McKey was sidelined because of a sprained wrist. Travis Best started at point guard and Mark Jackson moved to shooting guard.

“I thought we had a lot of effort out there,” said Brown, who had complained recently about a lack of effort after Indiana lost four of its previous five games. “And Reggie made some big shots, which was good to see. We needed this win.”

Miller, who was 21 for 76 from the field in his previous three games, scored 21 points in the second half--16 in the third quarter.

Boston 107, New Jersey 106-- David Wesley scored on a pull-up jumper with 18 seconds left in the second overtime as the Celtics beat the Nets at Boston.

Eric Williams had a season-high 25 points and Eric Montross had 16 points and 12 rebounds.

Minnesota 90, Vancouver 85-- Tom Gugliotta scored 11 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter as the Timberwolves beat the Grizzlies at Minneapolis to match last season’s victory total with their 21st win.

Detroit 91, Denver 81--Grant Hill had a triple-double and Allan Houston added 28 points as the Pistons beat the Nuggets at Auburn Hills, Mich.

Hill had 20 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists for his eighth triple-double of the season and his second in three games.

Charlotte 103, Phoenix 102-- Glen Rice scored 26 points as the Hornets edged the Suns at Charlotte, N.C., for their third consecutive victory after blowing a lead of at least 14 points.

Rice grabbed a crucial rebound and made two free throws with five seconds left to help seal Charlotte’s fourth victory in five games.

Cleveland 115, Sacramento 84--Terrell Brandon scored 26 points as the Cavaliers routed the Kings at Cleveland.

Portland 112, Dallas 86--Rod Strickland had 18 points and 13 assists in only three quarters at Portland as the Trail Blazers won their fifth in a row.

NBA Notes

A basketball fan punched by then-Houston Rocket guard Vernon Maxwell has agreed to an out-of-court settlement reportedly in the low- to mid-five figures.

Steve George of Atlanta was attending a Trail Blazer game against the Rockets in Portland on Feb. 6, 1995, when Maxwell rushed into the stands near the Houston bench and punched him.