Mills sinks Pacers in tough win, 116-112.

Patty Mills celebrates his long range connection.

Victor Oladipo (24 points, 7 assists, 10/21) fiercely powered the Pacers to a 57-54 halftime advantage, but the Spurs were held in the running by Dejounte Murray (24 points, 9/16) whose twelve first-half points kept them close.

The Spurs narrowly won the third quarter scoring, with Kentavius Caldwell-Pope earning more burn after first half struggles by Avery Bradley. The spurs nearly came off the boots of San Antone, unable to stop the Pacers from going up 77-65. They were able to respond, however, and ultimately win this exciting cross-conference match-up.

The response first came from Brandon Ingram's difficult three-pointer, epitomizing his bad shooting night despite making similarly tough shots in the first half, finishing 6/16 with 14 points. Avery Bradley came alive, easily the best player in the second half for the Spurs, swiping the ball from Oladipo and dishing the ball to Mills for his heartstroke from long range on the night.

Joakim Noah also did his duty after an inconsistent showing by Kyle O'Quinn in the first half, blocking a shot and making two nice put-back shots, one being a thunderous dunk. The run wrapped up at 12-2, as Oladipo dunked the ball past Noah on the fast break. Next came Noah's second put-back effort, leading to another steal by Bradley for the and-1 layup play, giving San Antonio an 84-83 lead. The next run by the Spurs finished at 11-2, highlighted by yet another deflection by Bradley. Mills called for the ball, whose sweet pump fake on Tyreke Evans gave Patty the open jumper at the elbow, 86-83. Struggling to connect prior, Davis Bertans finally hit a 3PT shot to give the Spurs a tease of a bigger lead, but the Pacers fired back with a 3 by Oladipo. KCP hit a jumper, Bradley got yet another steal, but missed the fast-break 3PTer. Then Brandon Ingram flew in for the second chance rebound, dishing the ball back, as Bradley hit home from long range, 94-90.

Wes Matthews' 3PTer nearly won the game.

Wesley Matthews got called for the charge, kudos to Caldwell-Pope assuming the position, and then Bradley poured in another 3PTer off a nice screen by Noah. Avery swiped an interception after a reckless pass by Darren Collison, the ball speeding up into Murray's hands for the smashing dunk, 103-96, putting the Pacers on their heels.

Darren Collison (24 points, 12 assists) redeemed his missteps with a mini-run that was all his own, cutting the lead 102-103. Avery Bradley hit another 3PTer, but Tyreke Evans (11 points) answered with the and-1 layup, as Ingram stumbled onto the hardwood, with Bradley being fouled on the next possession. Avery hit one of two, leading to a 3PTer by Wes Matthews in the corner, giving the Pacers the lead in the blink of an eye as the clock ticked down into crunch time. Brandon Ingram scored a layup with .44s left on the clock, 109-108. A steal attempt by Ingram rewarded Cory Joseph with a foul, but he only made one of two, giving the Spurs a chance.

Patty Mills took advantage of that opportunity, splasing in a 3PTer. Indiana called timeout, but missed a solid look from distance, as Avery Bradley made a layup down the other end. Bojan Bogdanovic (11 points, 1/5 3PT) would connect next from long range, capping the Pacers effort at 112 points. Dejounte Murray came through in the clutch, making both intentional foul free throws, all but sealing the victory. The Spurs applied intense defensive pressure, causing a loose ball scramble, with Myles Turner (8 points, 10 rebounds) missing a desperate attempt on the baseline once collecting the ball. KCP dribbled it out for the win.

The Spurs edged the Pacers, 30-29, in the final period, with both teams shooting above 50%. The Pacers dominated the boards 40-29, but committed 15 turnovers, despite San Antonio missing a handful of free throws. Bradley finished with 20 points and 3 steals, making a trio of long balls. KCP contributed 16 points, nabbing 4 steals on the game. Patty had 10, with his big time 3, and Joakim Noah had six rebounds with 3 blocks and 1 steal.