NBA ROUNDUP : Smits Helps Pacers End Spurs’ Streak, 117-100

Rik Smits scored a season-high 35 points and outplayed David Robinson as the Indiana Pacers scored a surprisingly easy 117-100 victory that ended the Spurs’ eight-game winning streak at San Antonio.

Robinson was limited to 19 points and a career-low two rebounds.

“This is by far the best game of the year for us,” said Pacer Coach Larry Brown, formerly a coach of the Spurs. “We were able to finish strong for the first time all year. I wanted to play another game tonight because we were playing so well. I didn’t want it to end.”

Indiana built a 24-point first-half lead, then held off several Spur comebacks in also breaking San Antonio’s 11-game home winning streak. The Spurs never got closer than seven points in the second half.

Reggie Miller added 22 points for the Pacers, who broke a three-game losing streak.

Spur Coach Bob Hill said his team finally experienced a letdown after a winning streak that included victories over Orlando and Houston.

“When you continue to win, everybody wants to beat you that much more,” Hill said. “The only way to sum up the game is to give them credit. They played one of their best games of the year. We have a great team, we just had a bad night. Every team does.”

Sean Elliott led the Spurs with 28 points. Dennis Rodman had 14 rebounds, snapping his seven-game streak of 20 or more.

Phoenix 113, Houston 102--Kevin Johnson scored 22 points and led a free-throw shooting spurt in the fourth quarter to help the Suns stretch the Rockets’ losing streak to five games at Houston.

Hakeem Olajuwon scored 40 points and got 13 rebounds, but fouled out with 4:05 left in the game.

Charles Barkley had 26 points, including the Suns’ final 10 points.

New York 115, Boston 110--The Knicks’ Patrick Ewing scored 38 of his season-high 46 points in the second half of a victory at New York.

The Celtics’ Dominique Wilkins became the ninth player in NBA history to score 25,000 points.

Utah 102, Sacramento 95--Karl Malone scored a game-high 33 points and John Stockton added 28 points, including two key three-point baskets, as the Jazz won in overtime at Sacramento.

Sacramento led, 88-80, with 1:48 left in the fourth quarter, but Stockton made three-point shots with 16.1 and 7.8 seconds left to tie the game at 90 at the end of regulation.

Cleveland 89, Detroit 81--Tyrone Hill, playing for the first time since undergoing hand surgery two weeks ago, scored the Cavaliers’ final 10 points in a victory over the Pistons at Cleveland.

Chris Mills scored 24 points as the Cavaliers ended a season-worst four-game losing streak by limiting the Pistons to two points in the last eight minutes.

Portland 106, Milwaukee 100--Terry Porter, playing in only his 10th game of the season after returning from ankle surgery, scored a season-high 36 points, helping the Trail Blazers snap a three-game losing streak with a victory at Milwaukee.

Denver 99, Dallas 96--Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf scored 29 points, including a go-ahead three-point basket with 36 seconds left, and the Nuggets went on to their fourth consecutive victory at Dallas.

NBA Notes

The New York Knicks placed forward Charles Smith, who has a sprained knee, on the injured list. Smith, averaging 13 points and 4.6 rebounds in 30.2 minutes, injured the knee last Tuesday in the Knicks’ loss at Orlando. . . . The Detroit Pistons activated guard Lindsey Hunter, who has been out because of a broken foot since December, and waived guard Johnny Dawkins. . . . As expected, the Minnesota Timberwolves signed former UCLA guard Darrick Martin for the rest of the season.