**INDIANAPOLIS – The Dallas Mavericks had the Indiana Pacers on the ropes Wednesday night, but somehow let the rope slip away.**
Up by seven points with only 67 seconds left, the Mavs failed to close the deal and wound up suffering a wild heartbreaking135-131 loss to the Pacers to Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The loss was the ninth in the last 10 games for the Mavs, who fell to 33-37 going into Friday’s home game against Detroit.
P.J. Washington (26 points, five rebounds), Jaden Hardy (24 points, 24 minutes), Naji Marshall (20 points, nine boards) and Kai Jones (18 points, 11 rebounds) were the pace-setters for the Mavs. Dallas also got 17 points, 12 assists and three steals from Spencer Dinwiddie, and 17 points and eight boards from Max Christie.
Pascal Siakam (29 points, five assists), Bennedict Mathurin (23 points, seven rebounds) and Andrew Nembhard (22 points, eight assists) were the main producers for the Pacers. Also for Indiana, Aaron Nesmith finished with 18 points and five rebounds, and Obi Toppin added 13 points.
Once again, the Mavs suited only eight players because of injuries and an illness. Still, they scored 74 points in the second half against a Pacer squad that’s seeded fourth in the Eastern Conference, and Indiana was able to sneak out of its arena with a 39-29 record.
Following three free throws by Christie, the Mavs were nursing a 128-121 lead with just 1:07 left in the game and appeared well on their way to securing a victory against one of the NBA’s top teams. But the Mavs didn’t execute correctly down the stretch and committed three turnovers in the final 56.1 seconds, thus denying them the opportunity to complete their attempt at upsetting the Pacers.
After Christie’s three charity tosses, Mathurin nailed a pair of free throws, Hardy committed a turnover and Ben Sheppard scored as Indiana trimmed the Mavs’ lead to 128-125 with 55 seconds left. Washington spilt a pair of free throws, and Mathurin buried two charity tosses, and suddenly the Mavs precious lead was down to 129-127 with just 36.1 seconds to go.
Washington split two more free throws, leaving the Mavs with a 130-127 lead with only 29.1 seconds left. Then, after Nembhard converted one of two free throws, Christie committed a turnover, which led to a three-pointer by Nembhard and a 131-130 lead for the Pacers with 16 seconds remaining.
Following a Mavs’ timeout, Hardy was whistled for an offensive foul before the ball was inbounded. Nembhard made a couple more free throws to give Indiana a 133-130 lead with 12.1 seconds to go.
The Pacers intentionally fouled Hardy, who proceeded to miss the first free throw, but convert the second one with nine seconds remaining. That left the Mavs down, 133-131.
Two charity tosses by Nesmith with 8.1 seconds to go accounted for the game’s final points.
**X: @DwainPrice**