Norris banked in a 3-pointer to force overtime, where the Rockets were victimized by Reggie Miller and suffered their 12th straight loss, a 108-106 setback to the Indiana Pacers.
The Rockets are mired in their worst skid since the 1977-78 season, when they lost 13 in row. This may have been the best they have played during the slide, but they still came up empty.
"It's sad to lose a game like this," said Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich. "They made some big shots and big plays, but so did we."
 A familiar Indy sight, Reggie Miller taking a jumper. Ron Hoskins NBAE/Getty Images |
Houston squandered an 11-point third-quarter lead and trailed, 96-90, after Miller's long 3-pointer that beat the shot clock with 42 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.
But Cuttino Mobley answered with a 3-pointer and, after Miller missed a 3-pointer, Norris banked in a 28-footer with six tenths of a second left to force the extra session.
"I just took the shot and it went in," said Norris, who burned the Pacers in a triple-overtime win last season.
A 3-pointer by rookie Oscar Torres gave the Rockets a 101-98 lead with 3:09 to play. The Pacers forged ahead on baskets by Jermaine O'Neal and Jalen Rose and Miller offset a hook shot by Kenny Thomas with another 3-pointer that gave Indiana the lead for good at 105-103 with 1:32 to go.
Miller's two free throws made it 107-104 with 10.9 seconds left. Torres made a pair and the Rockets had one more chance after Travis Best split a pair from the line with 1.6 seconds to play. But Torres missed an open 3-pointer and the Rockets remained winless since November 20.
"I was confident with the shot I got," Torres said. "I really thought I was going to make it."
"I thought we were going to make that last shot," Tomjanovich said. "That would have been great. The play has worked every time this season."
Torres scored 24 points for the Rockets, who lost 13 in a row in the 1977-78 season. They again played without injured starters Steve Francis, Glen Rice and Kelvin Cato.
Thomas scored 22 points, Mobley added 18 and Norris 10 and 10 assists for Houston, which had six players in double figures and committed a season-low seven turnovers.
"As these games get close to the finish and we have a chance to win, it seems we're looking over the fence or through the fence," Norris said. "We just can't get through it."
"Hopefully it will all come together sooner or later," Mobley said. "Unfortunately, we are losing while we are waiting for that to happen. Coach is trying to keep us up emotionally and he's doing a good job."
Miller scored 25 points to lead four Pacers with 20 or more. Al Harrington had 23 points and 15 rebounds, O'Neal scored 23 points and Jalen Rose added 20.
"They came at us with a lot of energy and a lot of strength in the beginning," O'Neal said. "We didn't bring the same energy at them."
Rookie Jamaal Tinsley had 18 assists for Indiana, which has won four of its last five games.
Two free throws by Kevin Willis, who collected 14 points and 14 rebounds, gave Houston a 77-66 lead with 2:16 left in the third quarter. The Rockets held a 78-70 advantage entering the fourth period but went cold and two free throws by Best gave the Pacers an 80-80 tie with 7:19 remaining.
Torres made a pair from the line for an 87-85 lead with 3:54 to play. But Harrington turned a pair of passes from Tinsley into dunks, with the second followed by a foul shot that gave Indiana a 90-87 lead with 2:03 left.
Another dunk by Harrington made it 93-88 with 1:18 to play.
"We sometimes have a tendency to play at the level our opponents play at," O'Neal said. "They were very scrappy, they brought a lot to the game and played very well."
Best scored 11 points and Jeff Foster pulled down 10 rebounds for Indiana, which shot 45 percent (41-of-92) and held a 52-44 rebounding edge.