Los Angeles - Troy Murphy was in the right place at the right time. Murphy made the game-winning tip-in at the buzzer, and the Indiana Pacers overcame a 16-point fourth-quarter deficit to stun the league-leading Los Angeles Lakers 118-117 on Tuesday night.
"We know that with our style of play we can come back on teams and no lead is too big for us," said Murphy, who finished with 16 points and 17 rebounds. "We just stuck with it and knocked down some shots."
Danny Granger scored 32 points and TJ Ford had 21 for the Pacers (7-10), who outscored the Lakers 32-16 in the decisive fourth quarter.
"It feels great whenever you pull out a win against a great team," Pacers coach Jim O'Brien said. "What a great win for us and our fans to beat those guys on a tip-in at the buzzer."
Kobe Bryant tossed in 28 points while Spain's Pau Gasol had 20 for the visiting Lakers (14-2), who were riding a seven-game winning streak and were off to their best start since opening at 16-1 to begin the 2001-02 title season.
The Lakers appeared to be in control by closing the third quarter on a 17-0 run that turned a two-point deficit into a 101-86 advantage.
When sharpshooting Sasha Vujacic buried a three-pointer a minute into the fourth frame, the lead swelled to 104-88.
The Pacers chipped away and pulled to within 115-114 on Granger's three-pointer before Marquis Daniels made two free throws to give the hosts the lead with 1:16 left.
Bryant, however, drilled a 21-footer to put the Lakers back on top with 58 seconds remaining.
After Ford missed the potential go-ahead jumper, and Bryant misfired on an 18-footer with 15 seconds left, Murphy grabbed the rebound and called timeout with 14 ticks to go.
When play resumed, Rasho Nesterovic (16 points and 10 rebounds) sent a pass over to Daniels on the right side, but he missed a tough up and under layup.
However, the six-foot-11 (2.11-metre) Murphy, positioned on the left side, batted the ball towards the basket.
It bounced around the rim before finally dropping through at the buzzer, sending his teammates and the hometown fans into a frenzy.
"They had a really good defence for our last shot," Murphy said. "We had a good play, but the ball got batted around to where it was loose ball and I just tried to tip it in."
Joked Daniels: "I missed the layup on purpose, so Troy can just tip it in. He made a great play for us."
Elsewhere:
Detroit Pistons 89, San Antonio Spurs 77
Rasheed Wallace scored 19 points, including a pair of game- sealing three-pointers in the final two minutes, sparking the visiting Pistons past the Spurs.
Allen Iverson also had 19 for the Pistons (11-6) who outscored their hosts 28-14 in the final frame. Tim Duncan topped the Spurs (9-8) with 23 points and 13 boards.
Portland Trail Blazers 104, New York Knicks 94
Brandon Roy scored 23 points, and Spanish rookie Rudy Fernandez added 18 off the bench, as the visiting Trail Blazers rallied past the Knicks for the fifth straight win.
Chris Duhon had 23 points with 13 assists, David Lee added 19 with 12 rebounds for the Knicks (8-9), who were outscored 33-19 in the final quarter.
Dallas Mavericks 100, LA Clippers 98
German wunderkind Dirk Nowitzki scored 29 points, and Juan Barea buried a key three-pointer with 50 seconds left to cap an 18-4 closing run, as the Mavericks rallied from 15 down to sink the Clippers.
Zach Randolph topped the visiting Clippers (3-14) with 27 points and Al Thornton added 23.
Washington Wizards 108, New Jersey Nets 88
Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler scored 22 points apiece, DeShawn Stevenson added 21, and the visiting Wizards (3-15) became the final team to win a road game.
Devin Harris, averaging 40.5 points in his last two games, netted just 18 as the Nets' (9-8) three-game winning streak ended.
Denver Nuggets 132, Toronto Raptors 93
Chauncey Billups had 24 points with 14 assists, and the Nuggets rocketed the visiting Raptors to match their franchise-best 19-game start.
Carmelo Anthony, who missed the second half of Sunday's game with a sore right elbow, had 23 points for Denver (13-6), which led 64-45 at half-time.
Chris Bosh topped Toronto (8-9) with 24 points and 12 rebounds.
Philadelphia 76ers 103, Chicago Bulls 95 (OT)
Andre Miller scored nine of his season-high 28 points in overtime, and the visiting Sixers (8-10) snapped a four-game skid.
Derrick Rose tallied 24 points for Chicago (8-10) which was outscored 13-5 in the extra session.
Utah Jazz 99, Sacramento Kings 94
Kyle Korver scored 15 points and Deron Williams 14, including the go-ahead layup and jumper in the final 65 seconds, as the Jazz handed the host Kings their seventh straight loss.
Kevin Martin, who missed the last 12 games with a left ankle sprain, topped Sacramento (5-15) with 22 points.
