INDIANAPOLIS – Jermaine O’Neal had 16 points and 11 rebounds, and the Indiana Pacers handed the Philadelphia 76ers their first loss of the season with a 97-86 victory Tuesday night.

Reserve Rawle Marshall scored 16 points, while Al Harrington and Danny Granger each had 14 for Indiana (3-1), which won its second consecutive game by double digits.

Allen Iverson finished with 20 points on 8-of-22 shooting from the field for the 76ers (3-1), who trailed by double figures the entire second half. Kyle Korver and Willie Green each scored 14.

Philadelphia had a three-point lead after the first quarter, but fell behind early in the second following a 10-2 run by the Pacers. Indiana extended its lead to 51-36 at the half by scoring 11 of the final 13 points of the quarter.

The Pacers started the second half by hitting three 3-pointers, two by Harrington, to push their lead to 60-39.

The 76ers cut the deficit to 64-47 with 5:10 left in the third quarter, but O’Neal’s layup halted Philadelphia’s momentum.

Hawks 104, Cavaliers 95

CLEVELAND – Joe Johnson scored 25 points – six on consecutive possessions in overtime – and the surprising Atlanta Hawks won their third straight, 104-95 on Tuesday night over the Cleveland Cavaliers, who again couldn’t make their free throws.

Tyronn Lue added 19 points, 11 assists and made a buzzer-beating layup to force OT for the Hawks.

Atlanta, which has had seven consecutive losing seasons and decades of frustration, improved to 3-1, one season after the Hawks started 2-16 and didn’t get win No. 3 until Dec. 10.

Zaza Pachulia added 19 points and Josh Smith 15 for the Hawks.

LeBron James scored 34 points – 24 after halftime – and Drew Gooden 21 for the Cavs, the NBA’s worst free-throw shooters who went 23-of-37 from the line and missed several crucial attempts down the stretch.

Miami 90, Seattle 87

MIAMI – James Posey’s 3-pointer with 19 seconds remaining lifted the Miami Heat, playing without Shaquille O’Neal, to a 90-87 victory over the Seattle SuperSonics.

Dwyane Wade scored 31 points despite going 8-of-23 for the defending NBA champions, who improved to 2-2.

Reserve Dorell Wright had nine points, five rebounds and a career-high six assists.

Rashard Lewis scored 23 points and Ray Allen added 18 for Seattle.

O’Neal missed a second straight game because of a bruised left knee. Heat coach Pat Riley said X-rays and MRI results of O’Neal’s knee were negative.

Wade’s two foul shots with 53 seconds remaining pulled Miami within 86-85. Allen then hit one from the line to give Seattle a two-point edge with 34 left.

Hornets 97, Warriors 93

OKLAHOMA CITY – Chris Paul had 22 points and 11 assists, Peja Stojakovic converted a go-ahead three-point play, and the New Orleans Hornets beat the Golden State Warriors 97-93 Tuesday night for their best start in franchise history.

After the Warriors had rallied from a 15-point deficit to go up by three, Stojakovic made a pair of free throws and then scored while being fouled on a pass from Paul to put the Hornets up 92-90 with 1:35 left.

Rockets 86, Grizzlies 80

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Yao Ming scored 11 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Houston Rockets over the Memphis Grizzlies 86-80.

Yao scored nine of Houston’s first 10 points in the final period to help the Rockets withstand a comeback try by the Grizzlies. The Grizzlies, who never led in the game, cut a seven-point lead deficit to 72-71 on a one-handed slam by Dahntay Jones over Yao early in the quarter.

The Rockets (2-2) regrouped quickly as Yao hit two free throws, Luther Head made a 3-pointer from the left corner and Tracy McGrady sank two free throws for a 79-71 lead. McGrady later added a key three-point play, driving in from the right side and making the free throw for an 84-75 advantage with 1:19 left.

McGrady had 19 points and nine rebounds for the Rockets, who overcame 24 turnovers and 42 percent shooting. Former Grizzlies forward Shane Battier, the franchise’s most popular player, added 12 points in 42 minutes.

Memphis (1-3) was led by Stromile Swift, acquired in the trade for Battier. He scored 15 points.

The Grizzlies, playing without All-Star forward Pau Gasol, were unable to stop the Rockets’ interior game. Houston had 36 points in the paint and outrebounded the Grizzlies 45-33.

Memphis made a run to start the third quarter. Mike Miller hit consecutive 3-pointers to tie the game at 45-, but the Rockets answered with nine straight points, mostly coming off second-chance opportunities.

The Grizzlies trailed by 11 before Eddie Jones scored 13 of their final 16 points to trim a nine-point deficit to 45-39. Jones hit a fallaway 3-pointer in the left corner to end the half.

Notes: Swift, whose knee and ankle injuries forced him to miss most of training camp and the Grizzlies’ first three games, was activated before the game. Swift entered early in the first quarter. … Miller, the Grizzlies’ second-leading scorer at 18.7 points per game, was held scoreless in the first half. He attempted only two shots in 16 minutes. He finished with 10 points. … Miller snapped his scoreless string with consecutive 3-pointers to open the third quarter, but was whistled for a technical foul after missing his third and complaining of a no-foul call.

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Davis then connected on a 3-pointer, and Stojakovic sealed the victory with two more foul shots.

Stojakovic scored 18 points, West had 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Mason added 12 points. Tyson Chandler had 10 points and 14 rebounds as the Hornets dominated the offensive glass, piling up 21 rebounds of their own missed shots.

The Hornets’ 4-0 start is their best since being created as an expansion franchise before the 1988-89 season. Previously, their most wins to start a season was three in 2003-04.

After Philadelphia’s loss Tuesday night, the Hornets and Utah Jazz – both 4-0 – are the NBA’s only remaining undefeated teams.

Last season, Stojakovic was on the short end of the Hornets’ first regular-season game in their temporary home. His Sacramento Kings lost 93-67 at the Ford Center last November.

This time, the sellout crowd of 19,164 was behind him the whole way.

He had three baskets – a jumper and two 3-pointers – all set up by Paul as New Orleans opened a 20-11 lead with an early 16-4 run. The Hornets led 52-43 at halftime on the strength of 14 offensive rebounds that led to 19 second-chance points.

New Orleans then scored the first six points after halftime to take its largest lead at 58-43, but Golden State came back with a 17-4 run to pull within two.

The Warriors took an 86-85 lead on Roberson’s 3-pointer with 4:37 left, and they were up 90-87 on Davis’ two-handed jam on a fast break. But that’s when Stojakovic took over.

Davis finished with 22 points to lead Golden State, Ellis scored 17 and Roberson scored a career-high 15.

Notes: The Hornets wore Oklahoma City jerseys to celebrate the city’s home opener. The only other time the jerseys have been worn was for the Oklahoma City finale last season. … Golden State’s Mickael Pietrus didn’t play with a sprained left ankle. Ike Diogu sprained his left ankle in the second quarter and did not return. … Hornets coach Byron Scott said forward Marc Jackson is ahead of schedule in his return from a strained right hamstring. He was expected to miss the first month of the season. “He says he feels great, and that’s what I’ve got to believe,” Scott said. “But I’ve also got to be very cautious as far as rushing him back because we didn’t do that last time and he still hurt it.”

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