NBA Game Summary - Indiana at Washington

Washington, DC (Basketball News) - Stephen Jackson and Anthony Johnson each scored 15 points as Indiana hung on to defeat Washington, 79-76, at the MCI Center.

Reggie Miller added 12 points and James Jones chipped in 10 points off the bench for Indiana, which has won three straight and nine of their last 13 contests. Entering the game, Indiana was tied with Cleveland for sixth in the Eastern conference playoff race.

"When things went bad for us early with injuries and suspensions, we had a choice to make," said Indiana head coach Rick Carlisle. "We could lament our situation or view it as an opportunity."

Gilbert Arenas paced Washington with 22 points. Larry Hughes and Kwame Brown each collected 12 points and eight rebounds for the Wizards, who had a four- game winning streak snapped. With the loss, Washington fell into a fourth place tie with the idle Bulls.

Trailing 69-61 with 5:27 left in the fourth, Indiana used an 18-5 burst to take the lead for good. Miller’s two free throws capped the incredible run as the Pacers grabbed a 79-74 lead with 33 seconds to go.

After Arenas made a quick jumper for Washington, Jones missed a three for Indiana, giving the home team one last crack at a possible tie.

However, Damone Brown misfired on a trey as time expired.

"I looked at all the options and I was open, so I took it (the shot)," said forward Damone Brown. "It felt good being able to be in the position to take the last shot of the game and to have your coach place you there."

Indiana led 16-11 after one quarter of play, but was unable to pull away in the second. The Wizards hung around and trimmed the deficit to 24-22 on Arenas’ basket with 3:50 remaining in the second quarter.

Washington would then knot the game up at 29-29 heading into the locker room.

Jackson had 10 points for the Pacers, while Kwame Brown led the Wizards with eight points at the break. Indiana hit just 1-of-11 from beyond the arc in the first 24 minutes.

Washington’s momentum continued in the third quarter as the home team used a 16-8 spurt to take the lead. Hughes’ jumper capped the run, staking the Wizards to a 45-37 edge with 6:30 left in the frame. Arenas accounted for half the points during the run.

The Wizards. who held a 59-53 cushion into the fourth, increased their lead to eight with under six minutes to go. But Dale Davis’ free throws would ignite the game altering burst for the Pacers.

"I thought it was a well played defensive game," said Washington head coach Eddie Jordan. "They (Indiana) made plays down the stretch and we didn’t, they made their three-point shots and we didn’t."