Indianapolis, IN (Sports Network) - Troy Murphy's tip-in at the buzzer capped Indiana's 16-point fourth-quarter come-from-behind win against the red-hot Lakers in a thrilling 118-117 decision at Conseco Fieldhouse.
Danny Granger led the Pacers with 32 points, while Murphy finished with a solid 16-point, 17-rebound effort for Indiana, which had lost two straight and five of six coming into the game. T.J. Ford logged 21 points, while Rasho Nesterovic and Marquis Daniels added 16 points each in the surprising win.
Kobe Bryant paced six Lakers in double digits with 28 points but it wasn't enough to extend Los Angeles' win streak to eight games. Pau Gasol finished with 20 points and nine boards, while Andrew Bynum chipped in 17 and nine.
The Pacers crept back after the break thanks to Daniels, who missed a dunk, layup and tip-in on one possession but finished it off with a three-point play and tied the game at 84-all with a layup at the three-minute mark.
After a pair of Granger free throws, however, the Lakers exploded for 17 straight points. In the span of a minute, Bynum threw down a dunk, Trevor Ariza picked Granger's pocket and finished with a fast-break layup, Sasha Vujacic nailed a three and Lamar Odom threw an alley-oop to Bynum for a reverse stuff.
When the third quarter sounded, LA was ahead 101-86 and appeared to put it in cruise control. The Pacers rattled off nine consecutive points to get within striking distance in the early going of the frame.
Trailing 115-109, Nesterovic hit a jumper, Granger dropped in a three and Daniels sunk a pair of free throws to take the lead with 1:16 remaining.
Bryant came down and hit a long jumper with 58.4 seconds left, and after Ford and Bryant exchanged misses, the Pacers held for the last shot.
Holding the ball at the foul line, Nesterovic hit a cutting Daniels with time winding down on the baseline. Daniels' reverse layup was off the mark, but Murphy was in the right place and tipped the miss, as the ball rattled around the rim before dropping through in dramatic fashion for the unlikely victors.
The Lakers led 30-28 after the first quarter and nine straight points from the visitors at the end of the half helped the club take a 66-61 edge at the break. Bryant capped the rally by driving the lane, throwing the ball off the backboard and laying it in.
