Pacers-Cavaliers: 5 snack bars as Indiana Ticket beats to the East Finale

Cleveland – NBA regular seasons are apparently what they make of it.

Look at the Cleveland Cavaliers, which are excluded from the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday evening from the Playoffs 2025, who have completed the number 1 of the Semifinals of the Eastern Conference with 114-105 with their 114-105 victory in the Rocket Arena.

The Cavaliers like Oklahoma City in the west stormed through the season from start to finish, and on the way to a record of 64 to 18 winning strips from 16, 15 and 12. Indiana was back in the pack and happy to land the No. 4 seeds with a solid but unspectacular 50-32 mark.

However, look a little deeper. The Pacers started the season of 5 to 10 and from various reasons-a difficult schedule, injuries, a slower than expected start of the Point Guard Tyrese Haliburton-Waren 16-18 when the calendar rolled over to 2025. They were 13.5 games behind Cleveland on New Year's Day and never won on the floor.

On the other hand, they have lost none. The Cavs 35-14 went from January 1st to game 82. The Pacers, 34-14.

“I'm sorry that your season had to end in a way,” said coach Rick Carlisle. “Kenny [Atkinson, Cleveland coach] Did a great job with your boys, they just had the perfect season. Then we came and we are hot. “

Indiana did not get the Cavs, the thunder and the Celtics, to achieve more than 60 wins because it took a few months to find themselves.

Now it will be back in the East Finale for the second time in a row. Here are five snack stalls from the Clincher:

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1. Indiana: We are not about the statistics

It is not exactly to say that the whole of the Pacers is larger than the sum of their parts, since their parts are many and talented. The squad is as deep as that of the elite of the league, with 10 or 11 players, who – a popular NBA office – are stars in their roles.

But there is no Kia -MVP candidate in this squad, no name about the title. Haliburton is a two-time all-star and a guide, but the 31 points he scored on Tuesday were the first 30-point performance of the Pacers of the off-season. Heck, even some of his colleagues consider him “overvalued”.

“We are different from any other team in the NBA,” said Haliburton. “We have no man who scores all the points. We defeat teams in many different ways. We move the ball, the ball finds that boys make shots, play games.”

Carlisle said: “People look at Playoff team and refer to great rating performances and triple double and the like. Series-defining games are often loose ball efforts.”

These moments were scattered throughout the game, but especially on the track. Myles gymnasts dilapidated block by De'andre Hunter. Andrew Nembhard burst along the left baseline. Bennedict Mathurin swings a Donovan Mitchell out of the glass.

All timely games, decisive sequences and efforts.

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2. Hard end for cavaliers

Cook everything down and this very special season for Cleveland ended with a splat. Three of his four losses in the removal came at home. His star, Donovan Mitchell, has not yet reached a conference finale. That was not what it was going to do when it broke out for the last six months.

Mitchell was so unprepared for this end that after the last horn he went back to the arena bowl to recognize the disappointed fans. It sounded just as broken as each of them.

“I just couldn't believe it. I still don't want to believe it,” said Mitchell. “I love playing in this arena man. This energy, this amount. Three lost at home, let the city down.

“You will write to us [bleep] Off man. But we will be back. We let the city down, we let each other, but will be back. “

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3. Never in the bud

The Pacers were beaten up 31-19 in the first quarter and Cleveland's start was spilled into the second quarter when it rose at 19, 44-25. Indiana scratched back to get within four until half -time, felt good with himself … and then immediately confused.

The Pacers could not play a game from the break and then turned the ball. The Cavs Guard Darius Garland came to the Mid Court, turned around a soft pick-and-roll round and then strolled unhindered for a layup from the logo. Several Indiana players shot themselves confused. Carlisle called Timeout only 55 seconds in half.

“We had misunderstandings,” he said. “We allowed a man to defiantly only there and take the ball up. We came into the time out and said” no longer. We are not. “And our boys turned it.”

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4. Bryant shines in the 3rd quarter

Thomas Bryant had settled in the role of a journeyman in 2017 when the Pacers acquired him from Miami in December for the princely sum of a draft of the second round 2031. Indiana became his fifth NBA team in four seasons and his contributions in the rest of the season were modest (6.9 ppg, 3.9 RPG, 15.1 MPG).

Not so in game 5. Bryant was a force, especially in the third quarter, which was active at both ends to give gymnast the breaths he needed.

A sequence began with the fact that the 6-foot 10 Bryant had blocked its shot from Evan Mabley. He raced below, picked up Darius Garland's passport and ran back to achieve a quick dark. He cut out and dipped a pass from Obi Toppin and then closed his personal sprint with a 3 pointer from the right corner.

At that time, the Pacers were up 12 again. It had to be emptied to Cleveland so that another Indianas Bank player came and brought about something.

“We gave ourselves some of the biggest minutes you can ask for a backup center,” said Carlisle. “Our team permeates his enthusiasm.”

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5. Short scouting report for Knicks or Celtics

Playoff opponents are practically autopical of teams with whom they are faced in a series, and it is certain that the Pacers and Cavaliers knew each other and outside. Nevertheless, they learn things from repeated competitions in a week or 10 days.

Here Atkinson is about the largest that he learned about the Pacers in this top -class look:

“The duration of their intensity,” said the Cavs coach. “How long you can go. You press Fullcourt and then you run consistently all games. You never stop. It is difficult to do. I give you a lot of recognition for it. It is extreme ball printing.”

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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can send it by email Herefind His archive here And Follow him on X.

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