Nuggets Hold Off Pacers

Chris Whitney and Juwan Howard have talked to their young teammates all season about withstanding opponents’ scoring runs.

It paid off against the best team in the Eastern Conference.

Whitney scored 23 points, and Howard had 17 points and 10 rebounds, and the Denver Nuggets held off the Indiana Pacers, 92-81, Saturday night at Denver.

The Nuggets played strong early, fought off a third-quarter run by the Pacers, then pulled away late to end a five-game losing streak.

“We tell them, even during games, that teams are going to make runs,” Whitney said. “They made their run, but we stayed strong. It shows that we’re growing up.”

The Pacers trailed, 49-37, at halftime, but went through Jermaine O’Neal to get back in the game.

Indiana opened the third quarter by getting the ball to O’Neal in the post nearly every time. He responded with eight points during a 15-4 run, capping it with a powerful two-handed dunk that cut Denver’s lead to 53-52 with seven minutes left.

O’Neal scored 23 of his 26 points in the second half, but it still wasn’t enough to keep the Pacers from losing for the third time in four games.

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Dallas 121, Golden State 116 -- Dirk Nowitzki scored 35 points at Oakland and the Mavericks barely shook off their big collapse from the night before, rallying from an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit.

After blowing a 30-point lead against the Lakers on Friday night, the Mavericks needed a 10-2 run in the final minutes to win. Coach Don Nelson was ejected early in the third quarter for protesting a non-call.

Earl Boykins scored 23 points for the Warriors.

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Houston 97, Philadelphia 72 -- Steve Francis scored eight of his 20 points in a decisive fourth-quarter for the Rockets, who won their sixth in a row at home.

Yao Ming had 18 points and 12 rebounds for Houston. Keith Van Horn scored 15 points for Philadelphia, which lost for the second consecutive time after winning eight in a row.

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New Jersey 121, Orlando 88 -- Kenyon Martin shut down Tracy McGrady while New Jersey built a big early lead, and Jason Kidd finished two rebounds short of a triple-double at East Rutherford, N.J.

Martin held McGrady to two-for-13 shooting in the first half. McGrady finished with 16 points and four-for-20 shooting.

Kidd had 15 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds before sitting out the fourth quarter.

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New Orleans 94, Milwaukee 88 -- Jamal Mashburn scored 23 points, and P.J. Brown and Baron Davis each scored 20 to lead the Hornets at Milwaukee.

Mashburn, Brown and Davis combined for 15 free throws in the fourth quarter. Ray Allen had 29 points for the Bucks, who have lost three in a row for the first time this season.

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Washington 100, New York 97 -- Larry Hughes matched a season high with 22 points, including four free throws in the final minute, and the Wizards overcame a second-half rally by the Knicks at Washington.

Hughes had 10 rebounds for his third consecutive double-double. Michael Jordan had 20 points and matched his season high with nine rebounds.

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Atlanta 94, Detroit 92 -- Glenn Robinson and Shareef Abdur-Rahim scored 23 points apiece to lead the Hawks to their third consecutive home victory.

Richard Hamilton had 25 points for the Pistons, who have lost four of five.

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Seattle 100, Miami 71 -- Gary Payton had 18 points and 11 assists to lead the SuperSonics at Seattle in a game in which eight technical fouls were called.

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Chicago 112, Cleveland 104 -- Jalen Rose scored 27 points at Chicago, where the Bulls held on after blowing a 23-point lead.

The Bulls ended a nine-game skid. Cleveland lost its 11th in a row on the road.