The Indiana Pacers capped off their first road trip of the season with a sharpshooting victory over the struggling Cleveland Cavaliers.
A potentially tough stretch of three road games for the Indiana Pacers ended on a high note, as the Pacers handled the winless Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday night. The Pacers went 2-1 during the road trip, taking them to a healthy 4-2 overall on the season so far.
The Pacers were shorthanded in this one due to the benching of sixth-man Tyreke Evans, who essentially served a one-game suspension for showing up late to a recent practice. However, the Cavs were short a key piece in tonight’s game as well with Kevin Love missing time with a sore foot. The bench unit for Indy suffered without Evans’ ability to create opportunities for his teammates and run the fearsome pick and roll combination he and Domantas Sabonis have been perfecting so far this year.
Shorthanded or not, the Pacers were ultimately able to take care of business and defeat the Cavaliers on their home court. Indiana was getting anything they wanted inside the three-point arc, shooting an impressive 65% from the field on the night.
The Good: The Pacers shot the lights out, at least from inside the three-point line. There were moments late in the first and fourth quarters when it looked like Indiana might not miss at all for the entire period. The starters all finished in double figures as well, which is always nice.
The Bad: The Cavaliers absolutely destroyed the Pacers on the glass, finishing with a 39-24 rebound advantage, including an impressive 16 offensive rebounds.
MVP: Victor Oladipo looked smooth and in control whenever he was on the court tonight. He shot very well from the field and was getting his teammates involved too, finishing with a team-high 6 assists.
LVP: Cedi Osman has been a solid #2 option for the Cavs this season but could not step up tonight in the absence of Kevin Love. Cedi was a -14 on the night and shot a sloppy 4 for 13 from the field.
X-Factor: Bojan Bogdanovic was on fire tonight and led all scorers with 25 points.
The Indiana Pacers will take a two-game win streak back home to Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Monday night to take on Damian Lillard and the Portland Trailblazers.