Recap: Pacers 111, Cavs 102 (A Midwest Classic)

The Cleveland Cavaliers put up a scrappy effort last night, falling just short as the Pacers’ offense came to life in the fourth quarter to take the game 111-102. The Cavs just didn’t get the shotmaking they needed especially in the second half as their second game of a back to back legs took over, shooting only 35.5% from the field for the game. But it was a better, more consistent effort than last night against the Mavs. Let’s dive in for last night’s takeaways…

Game Ball: Isaac Okoro

Ice bounced back from a bad game last night as good players often do, with a double double (22 points, 10 rebounds) in 43 grueling minutes. He also chipped in four assists and a steal for good measure. It was nice to see Okoro supremely confident in his three ball (3-8 from three) and just in general offensively.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrpZzPrO7-U

Honorable Mention: Dean Wade and Collin Sexton’s passing

With a spot start in place of Kevin Love, Wade put in an all round performance in 38 minutes on the court with a double double as well, producing an efficient 19 points (62.5% TS), 12 rebounds, three steals, and a couple of assists. A good friend who watched the game because of its playoff implications for the Chicago Bulls thought Wade’s shooting was especially impressive, and that the Cavs probably should’ve tried to feed the hot hand some more. Nevertheless it was great to see an aggressive, scrappy Wade out there.

Collin Sexton kept up the recent trend of decent passing with eight assists and a 19.0 assist ratio. Unfortunately, Sexton’s shooting took a nose dive in the second half as his tendency to chuck shots led to a very inefficient scoring night (40.0% TS). Nevertheless, fans can’t fault the effort of Young Bull, and hopefully he’ll learn that he doesn’t need to play hero ball to win games.

Bench comes up big

The Cavs’ three man bench unit came up absolutely huge in this game, led by the stellar play of Mfiondu Kabengele and Brodric Thomas, with a hat tip to Jeremiah Martin’s defense. Kabengele post a team high net rating of +18.6 in his 16 minutes on the court, which begs the question why didn’t Coach JB Bickerstaff use him more? Kabengele’s three point shooting has been decent and his athleticism and energy were sorely needed in a game such as this.

Brodric Thomas may have had his best game from a team impact stand point, with a +1.6 net rating in 34 big time minutes. Credit to JB for riding Thomas in this game, and Thomas rewarded JB’s faith with a two stocks, three assists, and six rebounds. The next step in Brodric’s game is to find his scoring opportunities, leveraging his NBA worthy jump shot and length around the rim.

Quick Notes on the Pacers

The two best players in this game played for the Pacers last night, with Domantas Sabonis (21 points, 20 rebounds, nine assists, +14 plus/minus) and Caris LeVert (20 points, 10 assists, +13 plus/minus) putting their imprint on the game with big time performances to keep them in the playoff/play-in hunt. The Pacers also received huge performances off the bench from Cavs’ nemesis TJ McConnell (10 points, seven assists +13 plus/minus) and Butler Bulldog product Kelan Martin (25 points, seven rebounds, +15 plus/minus). As the Cavs’ broadcast mentioned last night, it was great to see LeVert on the court after dealing with cancer surgery.

One thing to note about the Pacers is their disastrous coaching situation. They fired the well-regarded Nate McMillan who’s thriving in Atlanta for the Hawks, while a recent report by the Bleacher Report chronicles how Nate Bjorkgren’s personality has pissed off the entire organization. Also it should be noted that their assistant coach Greg Foster was suspended a game for trying to fight one of his own players in the middle of a game. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that the Pacers could fire Bjorkgren after just one season.

Three more to go

Next up for the Cavs, a date with the floundering Boston Celtics tomorrow night at 8PM, who will be without Jaylen Brown as it was just reported last night that he’ll require wrist surgery that will end his promising season. Until then, have a great one CtB!!!