Mourning had a pair of pivotal blocked shots as the Miami Heat held the Indiana Pacers without a basket for 7 1/2 minutes in the final period for an 84-80 victory that snapped a four-game slide.
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Without their superstar center, the Heat struggled on offense, blowing a 10-point halftime lead and managing just 37 points in the second half. They entered the fourth quarter with a 64-62 lead and saw it reduced to 71-70 with 7:06 to go.
"Our guys fought hard in the fourth quarter, and to battle like that without Shaq was key," Miami coach Stan Van Gundy said. "It was tough but I loved the way our guys battled. We had to suck it up when (Indiana) came back and made their run."
Mourning, who returned to the Heat as a free agent during the season in hopes of winning a championship, sank two free throws and Eddie Jones added a layup to rebuild the lead to 75-70 with 5:31 remaining.
But Mourning's biggest contributions came on defense. With 2:40 to play, he blocked a layup by Jermaine O'Neal, leading to a transition 3-pointer by Damon Jones that made it 80-72.
"That's what I bring to the table," Mourning said. "Ive always been a very intense defensive player, and it's my job to rise to the challenge."
"Zo's one of the best in the game at shot blocking. His timing is fantastic," Van Gundy said. "When you think he can't get it, he gets it. He's that tough at the rim."
After Indiana closed to 82-77, Mourning blocked a lane jumper by Stephen Jackson that led to two free throws by Dwyane Wade that gave Miami an 84-77 advantage with 24 seconds left.
In 25 minutes, Mourning had eight points, nine rebounds and three blocks, one of his best all-around games since rejoining the Heat two months ago.
"Zo was outstanding down the stretch, as good an effort as you'll see," Damon Jones said. "He was in the thick of this battle."
Mourning played with the Heat from 1995-2002 and is the franchise all-time leader in virtually every category. He helped end Miami's 12-game regular-season losing streak to Indiana that dated to his first stint with the club.
That stretch and Indiana's elimination of Miami in last year's Eastern Conference semifinals led to some late chippiness. Mourning committed a hard foul on Anthony Johnson, who retaliated with what appeared to be a punch. Seconds later, Udonis Haslem and Jermaine O'Neal became entangled, with Haslem ending up on the floor and O'Neal with a flagrant foul.
"I just boxed him out and the next thing I knew, I got thrown to the ground," Haslem said. "You know its going to be a physical game with them, but you can't retaliate. You have to roll with the punches."
"We got tangled up; it's not personal at all," O'Neal said. "He didn't like the way I grabbed him, and I didn't like the way he grabbed me. That was it."
Eddie Jones scored 17 points, Damon Jones added 16 and Wade 13 for the Heat (57-23), who ended their longest losing streak of the season. Miami will be the top seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
"Miami has had some struggles of late, so I knew this would be a game that they wanted to win," Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said. "They were able to keep it together and get it done."
"We did a great job of keeping our composure," Damon Jones said. "They wanted to see if they could get under our skin and keep us from doing what were accustomed to doing, but we battled through it."
Pacers guard Reggie Miller likened it to a playoff game, with both teams playing with a special intensity.
"Both teams are testy," Miller said. "They're trying to stop a losing streak and we're trying to move up to a fifth or possibly a fourth seed. It was a hard-fought game to the end; that's what it's all about."
Jermaine O'Neal returned after a 22-game absence due to a sprained shoulder and scored 16 points on 4-of-15 shooting for Indiana (43-37), which still needs one more win to secure sixth place in the East.
"I felt extremely rusty," O'Neal said. "I've been out for quite some time and my jump shot wasn't there. My moves weren't where I wanted them to be and the touch wasn't there."
"All things considered, he made his free throws for the most part, and he took good shots," Carlisle said. "If you look at his plus-minus, he played a very good game."