The Wine & Gold begin their three-game roadie on Tuesday night when they travel to Indiana to take on the Pacers. Tipoff from Bankers Life Fieldhouse is at 7:00 p.m. (ET).
Against Indiana, Cleveland will look to get the ball rolling again after dropping their latest contest to the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday afternoon.
Cavs Visit Pacers
From where to catch all the action to Tuesday's game notes, Cavs.com has you covered.
FOX Sports Ohio
WTAM 100, 100.7 WMMS, 87.7 FM La Mega
Joe G.'s guide to a victory.
Learn more about Tuesday's matchup.
Despite the loss, the Cavs played the Sixers tough, especially off the bench.
The reserves tallied 50 points on Sunday against Philly, which was their fourth consecutive game with 50-plus points (10th overall). Those four straight contests now match a franchise record established from 12/17/1991 to 12/21/1991. This season alone, the Wine & Gold are averaging 43.6 bench points (sixth-best in the NBA).
Jordan Clarkson was once again the main reason why Cleveland's bench continued to excel. Against Philly, the guard finished with a team-high tying 18 points, a team-high six rebounds and four assists in 28 minutes off the bench. Clarkson has now scored in double figures in 26-of-30 games this season (second-most among NBA reserves) and is averaging a career-high 16.7 points per game.
As a team, Cleveland was also able to dish out a season-high 28 dimes on 41 made field goals versus the Sixers while connecting on 12 three-pointers - their seventh straight game with double-digit triples (15th overall).
The Cavs will look to play to these same advantages against a Pacers team that is eyeing their eighth straight win. Indiana is currently tied with the Milwaukee Bucks for the Central Division's top spot following their most recent, 110-99, win over the New York Knicks on Sunday.
In Sunday's win, Victor Oladipo and Myles Turner led their team with 26 and 24 points, respectively while Domantis Sabonis posted 13 points off the bench.
After winning last season's Most Improved Player award, Oladipo is continuing to climb the ranks as one of league's top guards. He's now averaging 20.8 points per game to go along with 6.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists. Domantis Sabonis is also having a solid campaign, averaging a near double-double on the season (12.0 ppg/9.9 rpg).
With one game already in the books and their second meeting slated for Tuesday night, the Cavs and Pacers will meet each other two more times this season. Their next showdown will come on January 8 in Cleveland (7:00 p.m. ET) before they round out their four-game season series on February 9 in Indy.
Where to Catch the Action
TV: FOX Sports Ohio
Tune in for Cavaliers LIVE on FSO for pre-and-postgame coverage starting 30 minutes prior to tipoff and immediately following the conclusion of the game.
Radio: WTAM 1100, 100.7 WMMS, 87.7 La Mega
For live in-game updates, follow @cavs, @CavsJoeG, @CavsFredMcLeod, @MrCavalier34, @CavsJMike and @chones22 on Twitter.
Probable Starters/Status Update*
#2 - Collin Sexton
#1 - Rodney Hood
#10 - Alec Burks
#16 - Cedi Osman
#41 - Ante Zizic
G
G
F
F
C
#2 - Darren Collison
#4 - Victor Oladipo
#44 - Bojan Bogdanovic
#21 - Thaddeus Young
#33 - Myles Turner
Status Update: (Cavs) - Kevin Love (Left Foot Surgery, Out), John Henson (Left Wrist Surgery, Out), Tristan Thompson (Left Foot Sprain, Out), JR Smith (NWT)
Status Update: (Pacers) - None to Report
*Subject to change.
Head-to-Head Matchup
As mentioned, this is the second meeting between the Cavs and Pacers this season with Indy taking the first game earlier in the year, 119-107, at The Q.
Despite that early season loss, the Wine & Gold performed well in terms of scoring, tallying six players who bucketed double figures (Rodney Hood–17, Larry Nance Jr.–15, George Hill–14, Jordan Clarkson–12, Collin Sexton–12 and Cedi Osman–10).
Cleveland shot 20-22 (.909) from the free throw line in that game, which was one of eight games this season they shot .900 or better from the charity stripe. The Cavs also held a 39-24 edge on the glass.
In terms of bench play, Cleveland outscored the Pacers, 54-30, in their first meeting of 2018-19. On the season, the Cavs reserves are averaging 43.6 ppg compared to the Pacers 39.8 and will look to keep that trend going in Tuesday's meeting.
On Deck
Following Tuesday's trip to Indy, the Wine & Gold will head to Charlotte to duel with the Hornets on Wednesday. They'll then wrap up their road trip with an international showdown in The 6ix on Friday night when they take on the league-leading Toronto Raptors. The Cavs will return to The Land on Sunday, December 23 to battle the Bulls at 6:00 p.m. (ET).