NBA Game Summary - Chicago at Indiana

Indianapolis, IN (Basketball News) - Al Harrington scored a team-high 22 points, leading the playoff-bound Indiana Pacers to a 101-96 win over the lowly Chicago Bulls at Conseco Fieldhouse in the season-finale for both clubs.

Jermaine O’Neal chipped in with 19 points and 13 rebounds for the Pacers (61-21), who have already secured the top-seed in the Eastern Conference and will face the Boston Celtics in the opening round of the playoffs in a rematch of last year’s first round.

Boston stunned the Pacers last season by eliminating them in six games, their third consecutive first-round exit.

Fred Jones added 12 points and Jonathan Bender contributed with 11 off the bench for Indiana, which now owns a franchise-best record since joining the NBA prior to the 1976-77 campaign. The club posted a 58-24 mark under first- year coach and current team president Larry Bird in 1997-98.

"It seemed like a long game," said Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle. "I think we accomplished what we wanted, to get the win and get some guys some minutes."

The Pacers head into the playoffs on a hot streak, finishing the season with five straight wins, while the Bulls dropped two straight and five of their last six contests to end the campaign.

Jamal Crawford poured in a game-high 31 points for the Bulls (23-59), who last made the post-season back in 1997-98. Marcus Fizer added 21 points and Kirk Hinrich chipped in with 18 and 11 assists in the setback.

The Pacers found themselves down 94-86 as the Bulls opened the fourth quarter on a 13-7 spurt, capped by Fizer’s score with exactly seven minutes left in the contest.

Indiana, though, responded with a 15-2 run to close out the contest.

"I think we were up eight points or something like that with six minutes to go," said Crawford. "They (Indiana) made some plays and they took control of the game in the last few minutes. They made things difficult for us, especially at the end."

Fizer’s jumper gave the Bulls an early 27-21 lead with 3:30 left in the first quarter. Chicago’s lead would grow to 35-28 after 12 minutes of play.

The Bulls pushed their advantage to 41-30 in the opening moments of the second quarter on a Ronald Dupree trey with just under 11 minutes left in the frame.

Chicago led 59-51 as both teams headed into the locker room.

Crawford poured in 23 for the Bulls, while Harrington netted 14 for the Pacers in the first 24 minutes of play.

The Pacers used a 23-13 flurry over the first nine-plus minutes of the third to turn an eight-point deficit into a two-point lead.

Jamaal Tinsley’s baseline three-pointer capped the run, making it a 74-72 contest with 3:20 remaining in the frame.

The Bulls proved pesky and regained the lead on Crawford’s trey from the top of the key, making it 81-79 after 36 minutes of action.