| In the interest of speed and timeliness, this story is fed directly from the Associated Press newswire and may contain spelling or grammatical errors. |
Kings 103, Pacers 98
Tuesday April 01, 2003By DAN GELSTON
AP Sports Writer
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) Peja Stojakovic scored 26 points and Chris Webber added 22 points and 14 rebounds as the Sacramento Kings defeated the Indiana Pacers 103-98 Tuesday night.
The Kings trailed by 13 early, staged a comeback in the third and then exchanged the lead with Indiana eight times in the fourth quarter. Webber gave Sacramento the lead for good with six straight points, including a tip-in that made it 88-86 with 2:44 left.
The Pacers pulled within one on Reggie Miller's 3-pointer with 1:44 remaining, but the Kings stretched the lead back to seven. Jermaine O'Neal's 3-pointer and two free throws by Ron Artest cut the gap to 99-96, but that was as close as the Pacers would get.
Four free throws down the stretch sealed it for the Kings. The Kings went 32-for-43 from the line while the Pacers were 21-of-32.
O'Neal led the Pacers with 24 points and Artest had 23. Jamaal Tinsley had 10 assists and Reggie Miller added 15 points. The Pacers had their regular starting five Reggie and Brad Miller, O'Neal, Artest, and Tinsley for the first time since March 8.
The Pacers were trying to avenge a lopsided loss in early March when they accused the Kings of running up the score.
Indiana had all the fun early, racing to a 15-2 lead as the Kings missed nine of their first 10 shots. Webber missed nine of 11 shots in the first half, allowing the Pacers to build a 52-43 halftime lead.
The Kings turned it around in the third, with Stojakovic and Webber combining for 11 points. Scot Pollard finished with 13 points and 16 rebounds off the bench, and Mike Bibby added 17 points for the Kings.< ^Notes:@ Tinsley played his first game since March 22 following last week's death of his mother. Coach Isiah Thomas said there was no doubt Tinsley would start. ``I think it would be incredibly cruel of me as a coach if a guy lost his starting position because his mother died,'' Thomas said. ... Tinsley was whistled for a flagrant foul in the third. ... Indiana's regular starting five is 18-15 this season. ... Kings guard Jim Jackson didn't play because of a stomach virus.
(