Gordon had one more three-point play to cut Indiana's lead to 96-91, but that was as close as the Bulls got.

Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said the Pacers had no answers for Gordon.

"Ben Gordon is one of the great scorers in this league right now, in terms of being able to get on a roll, and we had to dodge some scud missiles to win the game because some of the shots he had were unbelievable," Carlisle said.

The Pacers went on an 11-0 run late in the first half on their way to a 60-43 halftime lead.

Indiana led 73-58 when Hinrich was called for fouling Orien Greene with 2:47 left in the third quarter. Hinrich also picked up a technical foul for arguing the call, but Granger missed the technical free throw, and Greene missed both free throws from the original foul call.

Chicago closed the third quarter on a 13-4 run, including 11 points by Gordon. Gordon hit a 29-foot shot as time expired in the quarter to cut Indiana's lead to 77-71.

"It was the first half," Gordon said. "We played a lot harder in the second half than the first. If we had the same effort at the start then the outcome would have been different."

Armstrong saw to it that the Bulls didn't come back. He got a steal with 29 seconds left, made two free throws with 27 seconds left and got the final rebound of the game.

"It's amazing that he's 38," Dunleavy said. "He moves like a 20-year-old. We've been seeing him do it for years, but to be able to maintain that is very impressive."

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