Key: Grand Central
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It’s hard to believe we’re 60 games into the NBA season, but that’s where the Cavaliers and Pacers find themselves on Saturday night for a Central Division showdown at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
After winning four of five straddling the All-Star Break, the Cavaliers ran into an even hotter squad on Friday night at the Smoothie King Center – with the Pelicans using a 43-point first quarter to pull away from Cleveland early, snuffing out any rally attempts in the second stanza. Collin Sexton tied a career-high in scoring, but it wasn’t enough against the high-octane Pelicans, who had three starters tally 20-plus in the win.
The Pacers are coming off an emotional Thursday night home victory over the Blazers – their fourth win in five outings. Indy got strong showings from its big men tandem of Domantas Sabonis and Myles Turner, with Turner canning a triple late in regulation to seal the deal for Nate McMillan’s squad, which current sits in the East’s sixth seed.
These two teams have split the season series so far – with the Wine & Gold taking the home opener back on October 26 and the Pacers winning a tight contest at Conseco FieldHouse less than a week later.
Key: Running of the Bull
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On Saturday night, the Pacers will try to slow down Collin Sexton, something not many teams have been able to do through his first two seasons in the league.
On Friday night, the Pelicans were at a loss against the Young Bull, who tied his career-high – set earlier this season in a win over the Knicks – finishing with 31 points on a career-best six three-pointers, adding four boards, three assists and a steal.
Sexton, who still hasn’t missed a single game three-quarters through his sophomore season, has been, improved his scoring average to 20.1ppg with Friday night’s outburst and has now notched double-figure scoring in 30 straight contests dating back to December 23, topping the 20-point mark 21 times during that stretch.
The Pacers will throw a bunch of looks at Sexton, but Malcolm Brogdon will spend plenty of time trying to coral him.
The former Virginia standout and 2016-17’s Rookie of the Year, Brogdon doesn’t (usually) put up Sexton-sized numbers on a steady basis, but he’s Indiana’s toughest backcourt defender.
Brogdon got off to a scorching start to his first season as a Pacer, including a rare 30-point outburst in a loss to Cleveland in the second game of the season – going 12-of-18 from the floor, including 4-of-6 from beyond the arc, leading both squads with 10 assists. The Cavaliers couldn’t handle him any better in the second meeting a week later – as he again led both teams with 25 points as Indy evened the season series.
Key: Money Up Front
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On Friday night, center Andre Drummond missed his second straight game with a sore thigh and the Cavaliers frontcourt overall had a collectively quiet night.
No Cavalier grabbed more than seven boards and the Pelicans dominated Cleveland on the glass, 49-34. They’ll need to be better as a group against Indiana’s big men – including All-Star forward Domantas Sabonis – on Saturday night.
In the Pacers’ Thursday night win over Portland, T.J. Warren finished with 15 points and the big man tandem of Sabonis and Myles Turner each notched double-doubles. For Sabonis, it was his 45th double-double of the season, tying him for second-best in the league with Drummond.
Sabonis has been as hot as his squad over the past six games, averaging 19.5 points and 11.5 boards over that stretch, topping the 20-point plateau on four occasions. In the Pacers’ November 6 win over Cleveland, Sabonis doubled-up with 18 points and 17 boards.
Kevin Love also grabbed 17 rebounds in that game, adding 22 points and four assists in the loss. On Friday night, Cleveland’s five-time All-Star tallied double-figures, but once again struggled shooting the ball against New Orleans, going just 4-of-11 from the floor.
Tristan Thompson, who moved back into the starting lineup, also struggled on Friday night, finishing with 13 points and five boards. But Thompson’s been rock-solid all season, and especially of late, including a 14-point, 13-rebound effort in Cleveland’s recent win over the Sixers.
Tristan was also outstanding against Indiana in the home opener this year – finishing with 25 points on 11-for-16 shooting, adding 13 boards and three blocked shots in the win.