Via AFP:
Paul George scored 30 points and the top-seeded Indiana Pacers, pushed to the brink of elimination, beat Atlanta 92-80 to reach the second round of the NBA playoffs.
The Pacers, who had the best record in the Eastern Conference to claim a home-court edge all the way into the NBA Finals, had to win the last two games of their best-of-seven series to advance 4-3 over the only team in the playoffs with a losing regular-season record.
Indiana, which pushed Miami to seven games in last year's East finals before losing, will face the Washington Wizards in the second round.
"This was a long...
