Rose Blooms in Pacer Win

A little rest worked wonders.

Jalen Rose, playing his first game in a week, scored a career-high 32 points Wednesday night, 23 in the first half, as the Indiana Pacers defeated the Toronto Raptors, 109-101, at Indianapolis for their 19th consecutive home victory.

While teammates Reggie Miller and Dale Davis were in Oakland for the All-Star game, Rose vacationed in Mexico.

“I wanted to get away from the game, lay out and just breathe,” he said. “I wanted to get my mind right. I’d be lying to say every player doesn’t want to be part of the All-Star weekend. But I had a great break. A lot of guys did. We got a lot of rest.

“That can work two ways. You can come back and be sluggish and not be ready to play, or you can come back like we did tonight. Fortunately, we got off to a good start.”

The Pacers seemed to have the game in control after a 14-1 run in the first quarter and led by as many as 22 points late in the second period. But Vince Carter, held to four points in the first half, had 11 in the third quarter as Toronto got back into it.

“I just had to suck it up and try to contribute in the second half,” said Carter, who finished with 21 points. “I just continued to shoot the ball and do the things I needed to do to help the team come back . . . [but] they had a little too much firepower for us tonight.”

Portland 99, Golden State 95--Scottie Pippen made a three-point shot with 38 seconds to play at Portland, Ore., helping the Trail Blazers improve the NBA’s best record to 40-11.

Donyell Marshall made two free throws with 54 seconds left to put the Warriors ahead, 93-92, but Pippen followed with his three-pointer and Damon Stoudamire made four free throws.

New York 93, Minnesota 89--Allan Houston made two free throws with 3.9 seconds to play after missing a pair moments earlier at New York.

Houston, an 83% free-throw shooter who has tended to miss at critical times this season, could have clinched the game with 13.1 seconds left.

Vancouver 92, Washington 87--Dennis Scott made a three-point shot with 41.7 seconds left to break a tie at Vancouver.

Mike Bibby had 21 points and seven assists for the Grizzlies, who rallied from a 15-point deficit to send the Wizards to their 13th consecutive road loss.

Around the League

Derrick Coleman of the Charlotte Hornets was acquitted of drunken driving charges in Charlotte, N.C., in an October accident that seriously injured teammate Eldridge Recasner. The judge said prosecutors did not prove the player was intoxicated at the time of the crash. Judge Eric Levinson found Coleman guilty on a related charge of unsafe movement. Coleman, in the second season of a five-year, $40-million contract, was fined $100 and ordered to pay $86 in court costs. . . . Point guard Charlie Ward of the New York Knicks will be sidelined three to four weeks because of a broken finger. . . . Guard Corey Benjamin of the Chicago Bulls was put on the injured list because of a sprained left ankle. He’ll sit out at least five games.