Brandon Miller scored 26 points as the Charlotte Hornets ended an eight-game losing streak by defeating the Indiana Pacers 113-109 on Sunday in Indianapolis.
Miller also grabbed six rebounds and handed out five assists, sealing the win with two free throws with 7.2 seconds remaining in the game.
Vasilije Micic contributed 18 points and nine assists, Cody Martin added 14 points, and Nick Richards finished with nine points and 14 rebounds.
T.J. McConnell came off the bench to score a career-high 30 points for the Pacers, while fellow reserve Jarace Walker added 15 points.
McConnell made 14 of 19 shots and had six assists, helping Indiana’s bench score a total of 60 points.
Miller’s finger roll with 59 seconds left gave the Hornets a 110-104 lead, but the Pacers quickly responded. Tyrese Haliburton hit a pull-up jumper, and Bennedict Mathurin stole Martin’s inbound pass and scored to make it 110-108.
After Josh Green made 1 of 2 free throws for Charlotte, Haliburton was fouled with eight seconds left. He made his first free throw and missed the second on purpose, which was rebounded by Miller.
Indiana missed their first six shots of the game, allowing Charlotte to jump to a 9-0 lead.
McConnell and Obi Toppin sparked the Pacers, who briefly took the lead, but the Hornets ended the first quarter strong. Green’s dunk at the buzzer gave Charlotte a 28-24 lead.
McConnell, who had 14 points in the first half in under 10 minutes, helped Indiana score a season-high 38 points in the second quarter.
At the other end, Micic had 13 points and four assists in the first half, and Charlotte led 63-62 at halftime after shooting 68.4 percent in the second quarter due to some defensive mistakes by the Pacers.
Indiana briefly took the lead in the third quarter with a jumper from Pascal Siakam, followed by Haliburton’s first basket of the game.
Seth Curry and Miller helped the Hornets regain the lead at 83-76 before McConnell led a 6-0 run to end the third quarter, cutting Charlotte’s lead to just one point heading into the final period.
