SEATTLE (Ticker) -- The Indiana Pacers' red-hot third quarter gave them a big enough cushion to survive and ice-cold fourth period.
Jermaine O'Neal and Al Harrington scored 11 points apiece in the third quarter and the Pacers held on for a 101-94 victory over the Seattle SuperSonics.
Seattle had a 45-44 lead at halftime but was dominated in the third, when Indiana made 16-of-21 shots and scored 35 points. O'Neal made all five of his shots in the quarter and Harrington was 5-of-6, helping the Pacers to an 80-60 lead entering the final period.
"Our guys at halftime regrouped," Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said. "They played the best third quarter we've played all year and that was the key to the game."
Indiana looked like a different team in the final 12 minutes, making only 5-of-15 shots and committing seven of its 16 turnovers.
Meanwhile, Seattle made 11-of-23 shots led by Ronald Murray, who scored 10 of his 20 points in the final 9 1/2 minutes. The Sonics pulled within 99-94 on a free throw from rookie Luke Ridnour with 20 seconds left.
"We knew it was coming," O'Neal said of Seattle's comeback. "Those guys can put up a lot of points real fast."
O'Neal responded with two free throws with 11 seconds to go to seal the victory for the Pacers, who avoided consecutive losses for the first time this season. They improved to 2-2 on a five-game road trip that ends Sunday in Sacramento.
"If you get up big on a team, they're going to make a run," Carlisle said. "The important thing is to keep your poise, keep playing through mistakes and we did that. I'm proud of the way our guys held up."
O'Neal had 30 points on 12-of-22 shooting and collected nine rebounds and five assists despite nearly missing the game due to flu-like symptoms.
"I wanted to give what I could give," he said. "I slept the entire afternoon and got a small meal in me and for the most part I just wanted to give what I could give. I'm glad it was enough to get a win."
Harrington finished with 18 points and 14 boards as Indiana played without second-leading scorer Ron Artest, who sat out for the second time in three games with back spasms.
Reggie Miller scored eight of his 14 points in the decisive third quarter and Jeff Foster grabbed 14 rebounds for Indiana, which shot 52 percent (40-of-77) and had a 43-37 rebounding edge.
Rashard Lewis scored 12 points on 3-of-11 shooting as Seattle was held to 41 percent (32-of-78) overall.
"It was very important that we get off to a good start in the third quarter," Sonics coach Nate McMillan said. "We knew (Indiana) would turn it up. we played well in the first half and knew they would come out aggressive. After that we lost momentum."
Harrington opened the second half with a layup to give the Pacers the lead for good at 46-45 and spark a 25-4 run. Harrington had all 11 of his third-quarter points during the spurt, capping it with a three-point play for a 69-49 edge with 3:46 left.
