The Cleveland Cavaliers have just defeated the Indiana Pacers 120-129 and secured their place in the 2024 NBA postseason. Looking at the standout Cavs and the Pacers play, here’s a look back as the Cavaliers clinch the playoffs.
Starting lineup
The Cavaliers went with a starting lineup of Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen.
Standout Cavaliers
Allen had a monster 29 point, 13 rebound triple double. Adding on three assists, his play continues to anchor this team.
Mitchell also had a great night, finishing with 33 points, four rebounds, five assists and four steals. He also was perfect from the stripe, making five of five. Now looking fully healthy, Mitchell should be a big benefit to the Cavs in the postseason.
Garland finished the night with 16 points, two rebounds and four assists. He struggled at times, but made six of 11 field goal attempts, including four of six from behind the line. He also turned the ball over four times, almost half of the teams total (9).
Caris LeVert also chipped in 16 off the bench with six rebounds, five assists, a steal and a block. Playing well against his former team, LeVert has been a steady producer off the bench.
Georges Niang played with a lot of energy, and continues to inject this team with intensity.
Pacer play
The Pacers closed a fourteen point lead in the second half, and brought the game to within two late. The starting lineup all scored in double digits, including Pascal Siakam and Tyrese Haliburton each scoring 19. Haliburton also had 12 assists and six boards.
TJ McConnell also scored 16 points with seven assists and two boards. McConnell, similar to Niang, is a player who plays with intensity. Because of this, they got into it early, and were yelling back and forth. After a quarter of chirping at each other, they resolved their problems and played on.
Obi Toppin was also playing really well until he appeared to hurt his ankle. He scored 10 points, two rebounds and six assists in 16 minutes.
A total of eight Pacers scored in double digits tonight, and they played hard. Although shooting an abysmal 28.1 percent from behind the arc, they kept the Cavs on their feet throughout.
Playoff bound
With this win, the Cavaliers have officially secured their place in the postseason. Who they play could still change, but as of now it appears to be the Orlando Magic.
With Mitchell back to playing at a healthy level, LeVert continuing to bring support off the bench and Allen anchoring the team, this play will make for an interesting first round matchup.
When the game was close, they played excellent defense. They’ve been struggling lately, not exactly looking like a top team in the conference. With performances like tonight however, when the games have stakes, they played well and locked in the win to secure their place in the postseason.
They play their final game this Sunday (April 14) against the Charlotte Hornets.
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Featured photo courtesy of NBA.com
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