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Collison and Pacers extend Washington's road woes

Dec 31, 2010 - 11:50 PM Indianapolis, IN (Sports Network) - Darren Collison had 18 points and six assists to help the Indiana Pacers take a 95-86 decision over the Washington Wizards at Conseco Fieldhouse to split a home-and-home set.

Danny Granger added 18 points while Roy Hibbert donated 17 points and eight boards for the Pacers, who snapped a three-game slide. Paul George had 13 points and seven rebounds in the win.

"I thought we played well and played a very solid game," said Indiana head coach Jim O'Brien. "I thought our tempo was consistently good. We're making strides but have a long way to go still."

John Wall notched 25 points for the Wizards, who have dropped four of five. Rashard Lewis had 15 points, six rebounds and five assists in a losing effort.

Washington has lost all 16 of its road games this season and 17 straight dating back to last season.

"It seems at home we play with a lot more urgency and aggressiveness and on the road we seem to come out passive," said Washington head coach Flip Saunders. "I love the way our crowd gets us into the start of the game, but we just don't seem to come out with the same passion on the road."

The Wizards had defeated Indiana 104-90 in Washington on Wednesday.

Holding a three-point lead to start the second quarter, Indiana held Washington without a bucket until Nick Young made a three-pointer with under three minutes to play and by that time had built a 47-32 lead.

The Pacers carried a 49-34 lead into halftime and pushed the lead to 56-40 on a pair of free throws from Hibbert just under three minutes into the third.

After Washington cut the deficit to 12 when Lewis buried a three-pointer to make it a 59-47 game, Indiana scored the next eight points to take a commanding lead again.

The Pacers took a 76-62 advantage into the final quarter and led by as many as 17 points in the frame before Washington ended the contest with a 9-2 run to make it respectable.

Washington's only lead of the game came when JaVale McGee hit a jumper for the first points of the contest.

Indiana led by nine points in the opening frame, but Young's two free throws late in the quarter cut Washington deficit to 25-22 heading to the second.

Game Notes

Indiana plays at New York on Sunday...The Wizards return home to face New Orleans on New Year's Day...Indiana shot 48.7 percent in the game while Washington made 38.8 percent of its shots.