YESTERDAY IN THE NBA

PACERS at CLIPPERS:

Ron Artest scored 22 points, Jermaine O’Neal had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and the Indiana Pacers beat the Los Angeles Clippers 97- 92.

Elton Brand had 22 points and nine rebounds for the Clippers, who have lost consecutive games for the first time this season after a franchise- best 9- 2 start and were beaten at home for the first time.

Chris Kaman finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds for Los Angeles.

Artest, who missed Friday’s 87- 85 loss to Atlanta because of a bruised right wrist he injured on a hard foul by Cleveland’s LeBron James on Thursday, shot 8 for 19 from the field. Stephen Jackson scored 15 points on 6 for 15 shooting after going 4 for 15 against the Hawks.

Austin Croshere and Artest hit three- pointers 34 seconds apart in the fourth quarter and Croshere added another trey with 7: 07 left to extend Indiana’s lead to 88- 78, the first double-digit margin for either team. Croshere finished with seven points. The Clippers went on a 10- 2 run capped by Cuttino Mobley’s 11-foot jumper and narrowed the gap to 92- 90 with 1: 07 to play. But Jamaal Tinsley hit two free throws at the other end, and Croshere grabbed an offensive rebound of Tinsley’s missed jumper on the Pacers’ next possession. He was fouled and converted both free throws for a 9692 lead with 4.2 seconds to go. BLAZERS at HAWKS:

Darius Miles scored on a bank shot with 1.3 seconds left, giving Portland a 77- 75 victory over Atlanta and ending the Hawks’ two-game winning streak. Hawks’ rookie Salim Stoudamire missed a last- second jumper following Miles’ goahead basket over Atlanta’s Zaza Pachulia. Zach Randolph led Portland with 24 points, making 12 of 15 shots from the field. Randolph missed two free throws with 1: 06 left and the Blazers leading by two, giving the Hawks an opening. Joe Johnson’s spinning drive tied the game at 75- 75 with 49 seconds left.