Danny Granger filled the stat sheet with 18 points while Roy Hibbert posted 13 points as Indiana topped Charlotte 100-92 at Conseco Fieldhouse in presence of more than 13,000 fans.
Josh McRoberts contributed 11 points and Darren Collison posted 10 points and seven assists for the Pacers.
Gerald Wallace did all he could and led the Bobcats with 26 points in the loss. Ex-Pacer Stephen Jackson had 15 points and eight assists, but he shot 7 for 17 from the field and committed seven turnovers. Nazr Mohammed scored 13 points and five blocks, and
Kwame Brown had a season-high 12 rebounds for Charlotte.
First quarter
Both of the teams started the game with a great spirit of win. However, the Pacers entered the game leading the National Basketball Association in field-goal percentage defence.
Stephen Jackson of Charlotte struggled hard and had 12 of his game-high 22 points in the opening quarter. But the Pacers used a big push at the end of the period to grab an eight-point advantage.
With 3:59 remaining, Nazr Mohammed's lay-up gave the Bobcats a 22-19 edge.
James Posey and Rush hit back-to-back three-balls in the final two minutes of the first and led by 30-22 heading into second.
Second quarter
In the second quarter, the Bobcats tried hard to make the score a respectable one as Jackson made his first six shots, all in the first 6 minutes of the game.
The Charlotte Bobcats did trim the margin to one on two occasions in the second, however Pacers managed the situation as Rush then hit two straight three-point shots to help the Pacers to a 57-50 halftime lead over the Bobcats.
Third quarter
Charlotte made a push early in the third quarter and a tip-in by Wallace cut the lead to 66-64. Dunleavy then got it offensively and drained a 3-pointer to give the Pacers a 72-64 lead that prompted the Bobcats to call a timeout.
With one minute to go in the third quarter, a lay-up from Solomon Jones expanded the cushion to 79-69 going to the fourth.
Fourth quarter
With the clock running down Granger's lay-up extended Indiana's lead to 84-71, but a Shaun Livingston's steal and jam had the Bobcats within 87-83. Charlotte did not threaten the rest of the way and the Pacers handed them their sixth straight road loss.
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