NBA

Five Pacers charged in brawl will be tried separately

By wire services
Published April 9, 2005

ROCHESTER HILLS, Mich. - Five Pacer players charged in one of the worst brawls in U.S. sports history will be tried separately.

A judge Friday granted the players' request for separate trials on misdemeanor assault and battery charges so they would not be called as complaining witnesses at the same trial in which they are defendants.

Lawyers for the five - Ron Artest, Jermaine O'Neal, Stephen Jackson, Anthony Johnson and David Harrison - contended there was a risk the players would be called to testify in a way that could be self-incriminating.

Two other defendants, fans William Paulson and John Ackerman, were granted requests that they be tried together, but separately from the other defendants in the case stemming from the Nov.19 brawl.

Judge Lisa Asadoorian said the two remaining defendants - David Wallace, brother of Pistons center Ben Wallace, and John Green, the fan who prosecutors say sparked the brawl by lobbing a drink that struck Artest - would be tried together. No players or fans facing charges were at the hearing.

The brawl started after Ben Wallace shoved Artest following a hard foul. After they were separated, Artest was doused with the drink, rushed into the stands and began beating a man he thought had thrown it. Some teammates joined him in the stands and also fought with fans on the court.

PACERS 93, WIZARDS 83: Reggie Miller scored 18 to lead host Indiana to their season-high sixth straight win. Stephen Jackson had 17 points and seven rebounds and Anthony Johnson added 14 points for the Pacers, who moved into a tie with Washington for fifth place in the East. Both are two games behind Chicago. The teams were tied at 44-all at halftime before Indiana began to pull away in the third with the help of Miller's shooting and passing.

76ERS 103, CAVALIERS 98: Allen Iverson had 23 points and a career-high 16 assists to help host Philadelphia sweep the season series and leapfrog Cleveland into seventh place in the East playoff race. The Cavaliers and Sixers are 38-37, but Philadelphia has the tiebreaker with three wins against Cleveland. The Sixers played without Chris Webber (sprained left shoulder), who missed his fourth straight game. The Cavs' LeBron James scored 37 and had 13 rebounds.

GRIZZLIES 97, HEAT 81: Host Memphis dominated play inside against a Miami team missing Shaquille O'Neal and moved closer to a playoff spot. The Grizzlies, who are battling for the eighth spot in the West, used accuracy from long range to build a 30-point first-half advantage. They hit their first five 3-point attempts and led 60-35 at the half. O'Neal missed his second straight game with a stomach ailment. In his absence, the Heat was outscored 24-2 in the paint in the first half and outrebounded 20-15.

BULLS 102, KNICKS 94: Ben Gordon scored 22 and Kirk Hinrich added 20 to help visiting Chicago hand New York its ninth straight loss. Stephon Marbury had 29 points for the Knicks, who were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs during halftime when Philadelphia won. NUGGETS 107, T-WOLVES 104: Carmelo Anthony scored 26 and Andre Miller had 22 points and 15 assists to help visiting Denver deal a serious blow to Minnesota's playoff hopes. The Timberwolves fell 31/2 games behind eighth-place Memphis. Kevin Garnett had 26 points and 16 rebounds for Minnesota, which had won seven of its past eight.

KINGS 119, BLAZERS 115: Peja Stojakovic had 35 points as visiting Sacramento clinched its seventh-straight playoff appearance. Shareef Abdur-Rahim had 23 points and 13 rebounds and Darius Miles returned after missing three games to score 23 points for Portland, which lost Damon Stoudamire to a bruised shoulder in the fourth.

RAPTORS 109, HAWKS 101 (OT): Jalen Rose scored 30 as host Toronto handed Atlanta its 14th straight loss. The Hawks' Tyronn Lue forced overtime when he made a pair of free throws with 11.4 seconds remaining. The Raptors dominated the extra period, and back-to-back 3s by Morris Peterson and Rose gave them a 108-101 lead with 40 seconds left.

JAZZ 98, HORNETS 87: Matt Harpring scored 10 of his 28 in the fourth to lead visiting Utah. New Orleans overcame a 14-point, second-half deficit to take an 85-84 lead before Harpring took over. He scored eight straight, sparking a 10-0 run that put the Hornets back in a nine-point hole with just under two minutes left.

BUCKS 93, BOBCATS 75: Desmond Mason scored 21 and Marcus Fizer added a season-high 18 for host Milwaukee. Michael Redd had 17 points in his return from a leg injury. Charlotte took an 11-point lead in the opening minutes, but Redd sparked a quick comeback and the Bobcats trailed 49-33 at halftime.

WARRIORS 127, SUNS 119: Mickael Pietrus hit six 3-pointers while scoring a career-high 28, and host Golden State matched its franchise record with 18 3-pointers. Mike Dunleavy had 28 points, including five 3s, as the Warriors extended their winning streak to eight, the longest since 1994. Phoenix's six-game winning streak ended despite Amare Stoudemire's 44 points and 16 rebounds.

[Last modified April 9, 2005, 07:10:29]