Pacers rally to beat Clippers 111-102 for 2nd road win
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Paul George and C.J. Miles returned to help the Indiana Pacers rally past the Los Angeles Clippers with just their second road win of the season.
Thaddeus Young scored 17 points and George added 16 after missing four of the last five games in the Pacers' 111-102 victory on Sunday night that gave them a sweep of the season series for the first time since 2013-14.
Indiana came back from 15 points down in the first quarter and held on after the Clippers got within four in the fourth.
"It was great to have everybody out there contributing. Everybody played a big part in this win," George said. "That's got to be us. We can't put the pressure on one guy. We need this to be a collective effort every night."
Rodney Stuckey also had 16 points and Jeff Teague added 15 points for the Pacers. Miles had 12 points after missing six games with a sore left knee.
Blake Griffin had 24 points and 16 rebounds for the Clippers, whose two-game winning streak was snapped in their return to Staples Center. They went 3-3 on their recent six-game road trip, including a 91-70 loss at Indiana last week.
Los Angeles led by 15 in the first quarter and appeared on its way to victory, especially when the Pacers missed 15 of 22 shots.
"We didn't get off to a good start. The good thing about that was that we stayed with it," Indiana coach Nate McMillan said. "We started to get stops. We started to make baskets, and we worked our way back into the game, kind of grinded it out."
Indiana regrouped and eventually led by 20 in the fourth quarter.
That's when the Clippers staged a furious rally, outscoring Indiana 22-9 to close to 98-93.
DeAndre Jordan had a putback dunk off J.J. Redick's missed 3-pointer, but he missed the free throw to leave the Clippers down 104-100.
Los Angeles has lost four of six.
"We couldn't get out of a hole," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. "They were very confident against us."
George hit a 3-pointer with 48 seconds to go and Young made a pair of free throws to close out the comeback win.
Jordan had 15 rebounds for the Clippers. Chris Paul added 18 points and 11 assists.
The Pacers took their first lead on a 3-pointer by Teague late in the second quarter when Stuckey scored 10 points, leaving them trailing 52-48 at the break.
Indiana opened the third on a 19-2 run to take a 67-54 lead, with Young scoring eight and George five. The Clippers missed their first 10 shots and finished just 5 of 19 in the quarter. Stuckey's consecutive baskets sent the Pacers into the fourth ahead 83-69.
"They got us," Paul said. "We started off the game well but the third quarter we just didn't have it."
TIP-INS
Pacers: They narrowly missed a season low in points in the first quarter, saved only by Aaron Brooks making three free throws for 17, one off their season low.
Clippers: Redick hit five 3-pointers in the first half for all of his 15 points. ... Los Angeles tied its season high with 20 turnovers. ... Three of the Clippers' six losses have come at home.
AND THERE WAS BLOOD
George played most of the game with tissue stuffed in his bloody nose.
"It was weird. Out of nowhere I wiped my nose and saw blood," he said. "Maybe it's the air out here. I'm not used to it."
UP NEXT
Pacers: Visit Western Conference-leading Golden State on Monday night in the second game of a back-to-back. They are 0-3 in such games this season. The Warriors handed Indiana its worst home loss in franchise history with a 120-83 victory on Nov. 21.
Clippers: Host Golden State on Wednesday night in the first meeting of the season between the Pacific Division's top two teams.
