CLEVELAND, Ohio — The road to the conference finals no longer goes through Cleveland.
The top-seeded Cavs lost their first game of the NBA playoffs to the fourth-seeded Indiana Pacers on Sunday night, 121-112, inside a stunned Rocket Arena.
Cleveland no longer has homecourt advantage in this best-of-seven series.
“They outplayed us,” Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said. “Gotta give them credit, simple as that.”
In the week leading up to Game 1, the Cavs repeatedly spoke with respect for the Pacers, knowing they would have their hands full, especially on the defensive end.
Pace. Speed. Movement. Spacing. Skill. Those were some of the buzzwords.
Cleveland, which stifled overmatched Miami in Round One, had no answers for any of it.
And playing without All-Star point guard Darius Garland, the team’s leading scorer in the postseason, the Cavs’ top-rated offense couldn’t keep up either.
Too much depth. Too much firepower. Too much balance. Too much timely shot-making. Too much experience. Too much mental toughness. Too much relentlessness.
This isn’t Miami anymore. This series requires something more. It’s an entirely different test.
The Cavs failed this one.
“Took us a while to figure out their speed,” Atkinson admitted. “In the beginning, they had us kind of in the blender a little bit. And then their shot-making was otherworldly.”
Garland missed his third straight playoff game because of a sprained big toe on his left foot. That left most of the heavy lifting to MVP candidate Donovan Mitchell.
Despite looking hobbled at various points throughout the second half, Mitchell tried to will Cleveland to victory. He couldn’t do it this time.
The Cavs, who trailed Miami in the first round for just about 17 minutes — total — were behind nearly all night. For 40:57, to be exact. Playing from behind against surgical Indiana isn’t typically a pathway to success.
The Pacers’ lead increased to a game-high 12 around the seven-minute mark of the third quarter following a backbreaking Aaron Nesmith 3-pointer that forced Cleveland to call timeout and regroup.
The Cavs responded with a 20-4 run, going in front by four, their biggest lead of the game.
The arena in a frenzy. White towels waving frantically. Confidence seeping through every Cavalier. Deafening roars.
A lesser opponent would’ve crumbled. Not Indiana.
Despite that signature Cavaliers flurry, the battled-tested Pacers kept their composure and even led by two at the end of the third quarter.
The fourth quarter featured six lead changes and one tie. Cleveland’s final push fell short.
Mitchell led all scorers with 33 points on 13 of 30 from the field and 1 of 11 from 3-point range in 34 minutes. It’s his eighth consecutive 30-point game to open a playoff series, surpassing NBA legend Michael Jordan for the longest streak ever.
“Jordan won Game 1. I didn’t,” Mitchell quipped. “They came in here and handled business. We would love to go 16-0, but that’s not how this works. Nothing to hang our heads about. We’ll be fine and we’ll be better.”
Evan Mobley, who was presented his NBA Defensive Player of the Year trophy pregame, added 20 points and 10 rebounds. Ty Jerome chipped in with 21 points off the bench.
The Pacers had six players in double figures, including guard Andrew Nembhard, who finished with a team-high 23 on an efficient 7 of 10 shooting and 5 of 6 from 3-point range. Tyrese Haliburton added 22 points and 13 assists, dictating tempo all night.
Indiana shot 44 of 83 (53%) from the field and 19 of 36 (52.8%) from 3-point range while dishing out 30 assists and being even on the boards. For the Cavs, they made just nine triples, their fewest of the season. It was also their second-worst 3-point percentage (23.7%).
Homecourt advantage is gone. The perfect playoff record is too.
Now the Cavs must do something they haven’t done this postseason: Respond to a loss.
“This is an uphill battle,” Mitchell said. “Always gonna be. It’s the playoffs. This is an experienced basketball team. They’re not gonna waver. They’ve been there before. This is what it’s about. Mentally, physically, continually going and going and going. They hit first and we’ve got to respond.”
Up next
The Cavs will host Indiana for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals Tuesday night at 7 p.m.
