Pacers defense dominates Cavs
Victor Oladipo and the Indiana Pacers were absolutely dominant on the defensive end in their series-opener against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
Oladipo looked like an All-NBA talent once more in Game 1, scoring 32 points, grabbing six rebounds and nabbing four steals to lead the Pacers to a 98-80 victory. While Oladipo dominated on the offensive end, it was the Pacers defense that really sealed the victory.
The Pacers had the Cavs on lockdown from the tip, holding Cleveland to just 14 points in the first quarter, which was their worst performance in the first frame all season. The Pacers grabbed the lead right at the tip and never let go, dominating from start to finish.
Cleveland looked to find their form in the third quarter, trimming the Pacers lead to just seven with less than a minute left, but Darren Collison nailed an important three-pointer to push the lead back to double digits. The Pacers went on to outscore the Cavs 25-15 in the fourth to close out the game and take home the win.
LeBron James recorded his first triple-double of the postseason, racking up 24 points, 10 boards and 12 assists. However, this shouldn't worry the Pacers, as James averaged a triple-double in last year's NBA Finals and the Cavs still lost in just five games.
The Pacers were able to keep the Cavs from coming back my stymying their efforts from three and limiting their opportunities at the free-throw line. The Cavs shot just 8-of-34 (23.5%) from three, well below their season average of 37.3% from distance. Cleveland also only shot 20 free throws and made just 60% of those attempts, both of which were below season averages as well.
While defense was the name of the game for Indiana, the Pacers also did well on the offensive side of the ball. They knocked down 11 threes on nearly 40% shooting, with six of those coming from Oladipo alone.
Lance Stephenson filled his usual role of pestering LeBron for 48 minutes and picked up 12 points and five rebounds along the way. Bojan Bogdanovic also chipped in 15 points, including two and-1’s in the first quarter that really got the Pacers offense rolling.
The Pacers looked absolutely dominant on Sunday, and if they can carry that same defensive intensity and focus into Game 2 on Wednesday night, they just might be able to bring a 2-0 lead back to Indianapolis.