INDIANAPOLIS, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- Ron Mercer scored 19 points Wednesday night and the Indiana Pacers withstood three shots by the New York Knicks in the final seconds to emerge with an 89-87 win.
Reggie Miller added 18 points and put the Pacers ahead to stay at 86-84 when he scored on a layup off a pass from Mercer with 1:40 left.
Indiana won its eighth straight home game and avenged a 98-96 loss at Madison Square Garden on Friday night, during which the Pacers misfired on several shots in the final seconds.
A similar scenario unfolded Wednesday night after Brad Miller sank a pair of free throws and Charlie Ward hit a three-pointer with 18 seconds to go, cutting the Pacers' lead to two points.
New York had plenty of chances as the clock ticked down. Kurt Thomas missed a turnaround jumper before Michael Doleac missed on a layup with Jermaine O'Neal defending. The ball bounced out to Allan Houston, who rushed a shot that missed at the buzzer.
Thomas had 24 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, and Latrell Sprewell added 20 for the Knicks, who lost for the seventh time this season after holding a double-digit lead.
The Pacers played without Ron Artest, a New York native who completed a three-game suspension for destroying a television monitor and an expensive camera in anger after Friday's loss.
