In a game that was incredibly exciting, yet undeniably frustrating, the Cleveland Cavaliers toppled the Indiana Pacers Tuesday night in Indianapolis, 127-124. Yes, it was a high-scoring affair, and no it did not go into overtime. But, we can get to that in a minute.
The game changed leads multiple times down the stretch, and Darius Garland led the way in the scoring department. He scored four of the Cavs’ final five points, on the way to a career-high 41-point performance. He was not alone on the offensive end, with Rookie of the Year favorite Evan Mobley pitching in with 20 points and 12 rebounds on 8-of-15 shooting from the floor.
The win pushed the Cavaliers record to 38-27 on the year, which is still good for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. Only five-and-a-half games separate the Cavaliers and the Miami Heat at the top of the standings.
A win is a win, especially this late in the year, so the Cavs will undoubtedly leave Indiana happy. However, Cleveland continued to struggle on the defensive end of the floor. They’ve given up over 100 points in four of their last five games, and haven’t been close to the same defensive unit we’ve seen much of the season thus far. On top of that, three of those aforementioned games have been losses, with Tuesday night’s being the only win.
On the plus side, when it mattered most, the Cavs showed up and put the clamps down on the Pacers. So, without further ado, let’s get into our two studs and a dud from last night’s exciting win.