Miller’s Clutch Shooting Leaves 76ers in Big Trouble

The taunts kept coming and the ending got ugly. Through it all, Reggie Miller thrived.

Miller scored 29 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter, to silence a sellout crowd that badgered him with derisive chants--and worse--all night.

With help down the stretch from Travis Best and Sam Perkins, the Indiana Pacers moved within one victory of sweeping the Philadelphia 76ers out of the playoffs for the second season in a row. Wednesday night’s 97-89 victory gave the Pacers a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

“I love that,” Miller said of the antagonistic atmosphere. “The more, the better.”

After Miller iced the victory on a breakaway dunk with 22 seconds left, fans tossed debris on the court, including a full can of beer that missed 76er forward George Lynch by inches.

Miller closed the game by dribbling out the final seconds, brazenly bouncing the ball between his legs while staring down a group of fans sitting across from the Philadelphia bench who had been yapping at him all night.

In the end, he and the Pacers had made everyone shut up.

Indiana scored 32 of the game’s final 48 points, with Best and Perkins contributing several key shots. Best repeatedly used his speed to get to the basket and score while guarded by Iverson, and Perkins made a running hook shot and two three-pointers in the final 12 minutes.

Best had 19 points, while Perkins and Dale Davis added 10 apiece.

Iverson had 29 points to lead the 76ers, who will try to avoid the sweep Saturday in Game 4. No NBA team has come back from a 3-0 deficit.

Philadelphia forward Toni Kukoc struggled again, managing only four first-half points in 15 minutes. Kukoc did not score in the second half as his teammates repeatedly failed to get him the ball as he stood wide open.

Philadelphia Coach Larry Brown, who admonished the crowd over the public address system after cups were thrown in the final minute, was flustered.

“There was no organization out there,” Brown said. “I kept drawing up plays, and it was like talking to a wall. We’d make one pass and just stand around.”