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Wizards hold off Pacers

Nov 9, 2014 - 4:29 AM Indianapolis, IN (SportsNetwork.com) - John Wall scored 18 points and the Washington Wizards held off Indiana, 97-90, to beat the injury-riddled Pacers for the second time this week.

Nene did a little bit of everything, finishing with 17 points, seven rebounds, five assists and a big steal with 30 seconds remaining that helped the Wizards hold off a late rally by the Pacers.

After trailing by as many as 22 points, Indiana had it down to five with under a minute left. Out of a timeout, Chris Copeland tried to break down Nene, but the big man swiped the ball free and chased it down. He found Paul Pierce, who canned two free throws to help secure the game.

Kevin Seraphin chipped in 13 points off the bench for Washington, which bounced back from a humbling 19-point loss to Toronto on Friday and had lost 12 straight regular-season games in Indianapolis.

Indiana battled despite losing center Roy Hibbert to a knee injury in the first quarter. Solomon Hill poured in a career-high 28 points and Copeland scored 14.

"I found a rhythm and they kept giving me the ball," said Hill. "I just tried to make the most of it."

The Pacers have lost six straight games after opening the season with a win over Philadelphia. They are 1-6 for the first time since the 1993-94 season.

After trailing by 24 to the Raptors at halftime on Friday, Washington came out with a sense of urgency in this one and it showed from the opening tip. Nene scored six points during an 8-0 run that gave the Wizards an 11-4 lead midway through the first.

"We couldn't make a shot yesterday," said Wall. "Today we just did a better job moving the ball and getting our defense going."

Nene subbed out with 3:18 left in the first, but not before outscoring Indiana by himself, 15-10. The Wizards did not turn the ball over, forced 10 Indiana miscues and led 32-14 after one.

The Pacers played a much cleaner second quarter, only turning the ball over twice, and Copeland came alive with seven points. The Wizards still won the period by a point and owned a comfortable 54-35 halftime lead.

Hill dropped 12 in the third quarter, and Washington's lead was down to eight points, 73-65, heading into the fourth.

"Soloman played his heart out," Pacers head coach Frank Vogel said. "He played terrific."

Seraphin's jumper made it a 10-point game two minutes into the fourth, but Indiana had one final push. Hill made a pair of free throws, A.J. Price converted a three-point play and Hill dished off to Ian Mahinmi for a layup to force a Wizards timeout.

Hill made a runner at 6:48 to keep the Pacers within three, but the offense stalled after that, going nearly four minutes without a field goal.

Game Notes

Washington also beat Indiana in overtime on Wednesday ... Pacers swingman C.J. Miles missed his second straight game with a migraine ... Washington outrebounded Indiana, 49-38.