WRAP-UP
Like most people, the Cavaliers will be glad to see 2020 go after dropping their second straight to complete the calendar year.
After winning their first three, a slow start doomed the Wine & Gold once again as they fell behind early and never found their footing in a 119-99 loss on New Year’s Eve in Indiana.
The shorthanded Cavaliers – playing again without the services of Kevin Love, Isaac Okoro, Kevin Porter Jr., Dylan Windler and Matthew Dellavedova – got very good production from their starting backcourt, but not much more on Thursday afternoon.
Collin Sexton continued his offensive onslaught this season, leading both squads with 28 points on 12-for-19 shooting, drilling both three-point attempts and adding four assists, a steal and a blocked shot.
Darius Garland followed up with 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting, including 5-of-7 from beyond the arc, adding five assists and two boards. On the negative side of the ledger, Garland committed six of Cleveland’s 21 miscues on the night.
Andre Drummond battled foul trouble through the first half, but still doubled-up for the fifth straight time this season – finishing with 11 points and a team-high-tying 13 boards.
JaVale McGee also snagged 13 boards, doing so in just 13 minutes off the bench. But, like Drummond, he was plagued by early foul trouble and struggled in the second half.
Larry Nance Jr. was the only other Cavalier in double-figures, chipping in with 10 points on 4-of-9 shooting, adding five boards, a team-high seven assists and a pair of steals.
Six Pacers – all five starters plus Doug McDermott off the bench – tallied double-figures as Indiana improved to 4-1, led by Domantas Sabonis, who doubled-up with 25 points, 11 boards and seven assists.
Miss any of the action? Find all the highlights and photos in the Game Tracker.
HIGHLIGHT
With the shot clock winding down late in the first half, Collin Sexton fires and connects on a last second three pointer.
TURNING POINT
The Cavaliers got off to another rough start, trailing by 13 early in the second quarter before mounting a nice second-quarter comeback, with Collin Sexton drilling a 34-footer right before intermission to cut Indy’s lead to four.
But the Pacers came out of the locker room on a mission, running out to a 13-5 run to start the third quarter and closing it with a 12-6 spree that put them up 20 points heading to the fourth.
Cleveland made a valiant push down the stretch, cutting Indy’s lead to a dozen midway through the period, but the Pacers pulled away down the stretch.
BY THE NUMBERS
By the Numbers – 19.0, .500, .517 … Darius Garland's points, along with shooting percentage from the floor and beyond the arc, so far this season – scoring at least 14 points in each game and topping the 20-point mark in three of five.
The sophomore from Vanderbilt is also leading the squad with a 7.2apg mark and has at least two steals in three of Cleveland’s first five outings.
QUOTABLE
Coach J.B. Bickerstaff, on the Cavaliers getting used to working harder on the defensive end …
"It’s just something that they have to get used to. If you think about it, how many guys have really played defense over these nine months? So, we have to get used to getting into the ball, picking people up, trusting the people that are behind us – and right now we’re just not there. We’re not making them feel us enough. And we have to improve on that."
CALLS OF THE GAME
Enjoy the best broadcast calls of the night from Cavaliers Radio Network's Tim Alcorn and Rafa Hernandez-Brito from Power 89.1.
UP NEXT
The Cavaliers continue their longest road trip of the young season, traveling to Atlanta on Saturday night for a matchup against the high-scoring Hawks.
Following that, it’s a two-game stop in Orlando – on Monday and Wednesday – where they’ll take on the undefeated Magic, followed by a Thursday night meeting with the Grizz in Memphis. The roadie wraps up next Saturday night in Milwaukee.