If It’s Not O’Neal, Then It’s Bryant

All or nothing.

Nothing.

Needing two points to tie, Indiana went for three to win, bravely and stupidly, arrogantly, losing to the Lakers Wednesday night and losing any reasonable chance to win the NBA finals.

Pacer guard Reggie Miller heaved the basketball over Laker Robert Horry, higher than Miller wanted to but “right on target,” he said. The ball clanked off the side of the rim as the game clock blinked goodbye to Indiana and all that.

“We came up short,” Pacer Coach Larry Bird said.

About the width of a rat’s tongue, to put a measurement on it. Or one of Miller’s ears. Short is short. Short is 120-118 in overtime.

If not Friday in a home funeral, then next week in Los Angeles in front of a crowd caring not as much about winning as this one about losing, the Pacers will rest in regret, if not in peace.

“We’ve got a little bit of pulse left in the heart,” Miller said.

“Their backs are against the wall,” said Laker Coach Phil Jackson, “officially.”

“Uno mas to go,” said Shaquille O’Neal, center and linguist, who fouled out in overtime and watched Kobe Bryant take over the Lakers’ victory.

“This is the the game I’ve been dreaming about,” Bryant said. “I dreamed about hitting the winning shot today.”

“Kobe’s the hero of the game,” O’Neal said. “ I’m just happy we’re the legendary one-two punch.”

Never forget who is Punch No. 1, the big guy nearest the basket. In hardware stores and bad leads it is called “the paint.” In the NBA finals it is called “Camp Shaq.” If the Pacers and their pilgrims are to be believed, they ought to just stencil KOA under the basket and be done with it. Traffic cops issue parking tickets for shorter time than O’Neal spends in basketball’s forbidden precinct.

Call it Clock-a-Shaq, yet another device to try to control O’Neal. It is less spineless than Hack-a-Shaq, but requiring the collaboration of the officials. Opponents try everything to reduce his advantage short of insisting O’Neal play with oven mitts. That would be Muff-a-Shaq, I guess.