The Pacers expected to welcome a vengeful Cleveland team after seeing Indiana stop its superb winning streak a few days earlier in Ohio. The battle was indeed tough, and Rick Carlisle's men, deprived of Tyrese Haliburton and opposed to a solid zone defense, ended up cracking against the outside pair Garland-Mitchell and the Twin Towers Evan Mobley et Jarrett Allen.
Donovan Mitchell set the tone from the start by taking the first quarter on his own (30-37). Author of 19 points in 8 short minutes including two 3-point baskets to end the period, the guard set the scene! The Pacers did not give up, however, going 9-0 to briefly get back in front at the start of the second quarter (41-39). Cleveland's response flowed, with a 2+1 from Donovan Mitchell and Max Strus' 3-pointer, then the show led by Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen to put the Cavaliers at +10 (44-54).
To get around the opposing zone, Indiana relaunched by increasing the tempo, with a 2+1 from Pascal Siakam, a counter-attack dunk from Bennedict Mathurin and a foul on Ben Sheppard who also left in transition at full speed, giving him two throws. Gradually, and until Pascal Siakam's tap, the Pacers returned to -1 at the break (61-62), a small miracle which promised a great second half.
The Cavaliers control until the end
And where the Pacers shone in sequences, the Cavaliers were able to hold on over time and were logically able to extract their revenge at the end of the fight. First there was a very diligent third quarter on both sides of the field and won 38-28 under the leadership of Evan Mobley and Max Strus, authors of two 3-point baskets each.
The second arrow from behind the Cavs thus initiated a 10-0 concluded by Evan Mobley…. still from afar (77-92)! With their backs to the wall, the locals took their first knee at the very end of the period following the tap dunk of a spring-loaded Donovan Mitchell (87-100).
The two award-winning baskets in the corners of Bennedict Mathurin and Obi Toppin had the merit of maintaining the suspense, but not to the point of shaking the balance of the Cavs. Above all, the latter were able to count on an imperial Darius Garland to finish the job. His assist for Sam Merrill's 3-pointer and especially his 7 points in a row allowed Cleveland to keep its distance (109-118), until the expulsion of Bennedict Mathurin and the alley-oop between Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen did not come to kill for good the last hopes of the locals, beaten 127-117 against a team which once again confirms its strength of character.
WHAT TO REMEMBER
– Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland there. We are waiting for the response from the two leaders after going off the road in the previous match. We were not disappointed! Between Donovan Mitchell's 19 points in 8 minutes in the first quarter and Darius Garland's royal final with 13 of his 24 points scored in the last act, Cleveland showed that its rear traction had the shoulders to face this kind of challenge.
– Little scare for Darius Garland. The Cavaliers leader simply hurt his knee at the end of the first half, tripping in front of TJ McConnell. Staying on the ground for a long time, he seemed worried before returning to the field to show that he had regained all his abilities.
– Bennedict Mathurin is falling for “money-time”. The Canadian full-back lost his nerve after blocking Evan Mobley from behind, earning him a foul that he didn't appreciate. The Pacers player then approached referee Nathalie Sago to express his displeasure, brushing against her in passing before being restrained by Pascal Siakam. A misconduct synonymous with expulsion, knowing that he had already inherited a technical foul for hanging on to the circle after a dunk shortly before. His premature exit spelled the end of the Pacers' hopes.
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
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