INDIANAPOLIS (Ticker) -- LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers had their chances.
Ron Artest converted the go-ahead three-point play with 11.1 seconds left and James and two Cleveland Cavaliers' teammates missed shots in the waning seconds as the Indiana Pacers escaped with a 91-90 triumph.
Cleveland was in position to win for the first time in five games this season and snap a 24-game road losing streak. Clinging to a 90-88 lead, the Cavaliers gave up a layup in the lane to Artest, who was fouled by Ricky Davis.
Artest made the free throw and, after a timeout, James missed a driving layup with seven seconds to go. But Cleveland caught a break when the ball went out of bounds off a Pacer. DeSagana Diop missed a short jumper off the inbounds pass and, with the Cavaliers crashing the backboard, James missed a tip and Davis got off a weak put-back attempt as time expired.
"We had a great look, I had a great look," James said. "I got a little contact, but this is the NBA and most of that is not called. Whatever they give me on the offensive end, I'll try and take. ... After the inbounds, the ball rebounded my way and I got a great tip on it and thought it was going."
Darius Miles knew he made a mental error that put Davis in a bad position on Artest's layup.
"I made a mistake at the end," Miles said. "It's my fourth year in the league and that was a mistake I shouldn't have made. I'll learn from tonight, it was a lesson."
Despite the defensive meltdown, Davis thought Artest should have been called for charging.
"We went to double," Davis said. "It was clearly a charge, but we're on the road and you can't expect to get calls when you're on the road."
James had 23 points but made just 8-of-18 shots and committed seven of his team's 10 turnovers.
"By far, we showed a lot of heart," James said. "We're right there. That was the best execution of our offense and our defense following our game plan."
"He was tough to defend, but I didn't give him one of my best defensive efforts and I'm sure he didn't give me one of his offensive games," Artest, one of the NBA's better defenders, said of James. "He is going to be a good one. I hit him once tonight and bounced off of him, so he is solid."
Carlos Boozer added 20 points and nine rebounds for Cleveland.
Artest finished with 21 points while Jermaine O'Neal, who found a slicing Artest on the pivotal three-point play, had 14 points, 12 rebounds, six blocks and five assists. The five assists matched a career high.
Following the game, O'Neal - who played 39 minutes - was diagnosed with a sprained right ankle. His status for Sunday's game in Philadelphia is questionable.
Indiana has won six straight and 19 of the last 23 meetings with Cleveland. The Pacers also are 5-1 for the second straight season.
"We've had some good wins, but this was the best one in a lot of ways," Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said. "Statistically, they beat us everywhere but the score. Sometimes it comes down to passion more than Xs and Os."
Carlisle was impressed with the Cavaliers' effort.
"They're not winning right now, but they're playing hard," he said. "We won't want to see them later in the year because they're going to get better."
"I was really pleased with our effort," Cleveland coach Paul Silas said. "If we give this kind of effort the rest of the season, we'll win some games. Obviously, the last error defensively cost us. The guys really worked hard, we just broke down defensively at the end."
The Cavaliers trailed by nine points late in the third quarter but tied it, 75-75, on a free throw by James with 9:59 left. The teams traded baskets and the game was deadlocked, 86-86, following Miles' six-foot runner with 3:19 to play.
Miles gave Cleveland the lead with a seven-footer in the lane. O'Neal missed a short jumper for Indiana, but Miles failed to convert a lob pass into a dunk. Jeff Foster made two free throws to tie it again with 1:43 to go.
James missed a nine-footer, but Artest failed to convert two opportunities for Indiana. Boozer missed for Cleveland, but Diop grabbed a key offensive rebound and, after a timeout, banked in a 13-footer for a 90-88 lead with 26.7 seconds remaining.
Diop had eight points, all in the final quarter, and five blocks. He entered with just six points all season.
O'Neal and Al Harrington had six points apiece in the opening quarter, when Indiana opened a 31-22 lead.
James had 14 on 6-of-10 shooting in the first half, but the Cavaliers trailed 51-46 at the break.
Reggie Miller chipped in a season-high 15 points for the Pacers.
