Indiana Pacers Get Swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers
By Josh Padmore
The Indiana Pacers got swept for the first time in franchise history, losing to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 4.
Paul George missed an open three-pointer to tie the game with one second left, as the Indiana Pacers lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 4. It was a great look, but it was clearly rushed.
The Pacers fought back in the 4th quarter after losing control of the game at one point. The defense was smothering, as Cleveland went hit 1 of 12 shots at one point in that quarter. Jeff Teague was the catalyst of that run, on both ends.
Paul George, in maybe his last game as a member of the Indiana Pacers, shot just 5 of 21 from the field. I’ll do the math for you — that’s 23.8%. Myles Turner broke out of his slump by scoring 20 points on 8 of 10 shooting. He was very emotional when the game was over.
What failed the Pacers? They got out-rebounded, losing the rebounding battle 42 to 48. More importantly, they didn’t get enough contributions from everyone as a whole. If Paul George was on his game, the Pacers probably would be on their way to Cleveland right now for another game.
LeBron James played like LeBron James, the best player in the world. Kyrie Irving also lit up the Pacers for 28 points. He didn’t shoot it well, but his isolation buckets were grueling. The Pacers did a great job on Kevin Love, as he shot just 2 of 13 from the field.
It will be a very, very interesting off-season for the Indiana Pacers. Will they re-tool in one last attempt to convince Paul George to stay, or will they blow it up and trade their star player? Time will tell.
Small Forward. Indiana Pacers. PAUL GEORGE. C+. George shot just 5 of 21 from the field in the loss for 15 points. He desperately needs to get to the free-throw line more often. He only got there three times tonight, connecting on two of his shots. He added 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 turnovers and 4 steals. He played a bit selfish down the stretch in what turned out to be a heart breaking loss for Indiana.
A-. Teague played really hard down the stretch. He also played some of the best defense I’ve seen him play all year long. He even got a steal when the Cavs were trying to throw it to LeBron James when he was matched up with Teague on a mismatch. Teague has now lost 12 straight playoff games to Cleveland. He finished with 15 points and 10 assists.. Point Guard. Indiana Pacers. JEFF TEAGUE
Center. Indiana Pacers. MYLES TURNER. A-. Broke out of his shooting slump for 20 points on 8 of 10 shooting from the field. He had trouble with Tristan Thompson again, but he did grab a solid 9 rebounds. He did all he could, and Myles was emotional after the game.
Like he always does, Thad played hard. He double-doubled with 14 points on 6 of 14 shooting, and 10 rebounds. Hopefully he gets back to shooting three-pointers with high efficiency when his wrist heals during the summer.. Power Forward. Indiana Pacers. THADDEUS YOUNG. B
Indiana Pacers. C.J. MILES. C+. Started at shooting guard again, but was pretty quiet. Shot 2 of 5 from the field, with both field goals coming from the three-point line. He finished with 6 points, but was a +7 when on the court.. Shooting Guard
D. Fell out of favor, as he only played 5 minutes tonight.. Shooting Guard. Indiana Pacers. MONTA ELLIS
Indiana Pacers. LANCE STEPHENSON. A-. Lance made the Cavaliers pay when they left him open. He made 4 three-pointers and shot 9 of 15 from the field overall for a team high 22 points. He added 6 rebounds and 3 assists. He can now focus on getting 100% healthy during the summer.. Shooting Guard
B-. Coming off of the calf strain, Glenn was impressive in his limited minutes over the last three games. Tonight, he scored 6 points on 3 of 3 shooting from the field.. Small Forward. Indiana Pacers. GLENN ROBINSON III
Indiana Pacers. KEVIN SERAPHIN. C-. Scored 4 points and grabbed 2 rebounds off the bench. He showed a lot of signs in this series and down the stretch of the season. I personally believe he should be Myles Turner’s primary backup for next season.. Center