Friday, April 12 at 7:30 PM ET at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse
Game Preview
The Pacers (46-34) hit the road for the last time in the regular season on Friday, traveling to Cleveland (47-33) for a meaningful matchup with the Cavaliers.
The math is simple for the Pacers at this point. If they win one of their final two regular-season games -- either Friday at Cleveland or Sunday against Atlanta -- they will clinch a top-six seed and a guaranteed berth in the playoffs. But if the Pacers were to win on Friday in Cleveland, the door would be open for them to secure a top-four seed and homecourt advantage in a first-round playoff series.
Indiana is a game behind the Cavs entering Friday, but the Pacers are 2-1 against Cleveland this season. A win on Friday would also mean the Blue & Gold won the season series with the Cavs and would have the head-to-head tiebreaker over Cleveland, which would move the Pacers into fifth. To then get the four seed, the Pacers would need to close out the season with a win over Atlanta and have either Orlando drop one of its remaining two games or New York lose two of its final three games (if both those things happened, the Pacers could move as high as the three seed).
But if the Pacers were to lose on Friday, their chances of moving any higher than sixth decrease dramatically. Were the Cavs to even the season series, the next tiebreaker is division record, which Cleveland would win. The Pacers would still avoid the Play-In Tournament with either a win on Sunday or a little help elsewhere, but would have slim odds of catching any of the three teams directly in front of them in the standings.
The Cavs had dropped three straight and four of five on a recent Western Conference road trip before returning home and handling Memphis in a 110-98 victory on Wednesday night. The most important development for Cleveland in that win was the performance of All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell, who tallied 29 points, eight rebounds, and three steals while going 9-for-17 from the field and 5-for-10 from 3-point range.
Prior to Wednesday, Mitchell had only played in six games since March 1 while dealing with knee soreness and only reached 20 points in one of those six contests. The Cavs are clearly a different team with their best player fully healthy, and how Mitchell progresses could be the determining factor in their ability to make a deep playoff run.
The Pacers are riding high entering Friday's matchup, having won three straight and five of their last six. While they got off to a slow start on Tuesday night in Toronto, they righted the ship and ultimately came away with a 140-123 win. All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton had an especially strong night, tallying 30 point, five rebounds, and five assists while going 10-for-16 from the field, his first 30-point game since Jan. 3.
Projected Starters
Pacers: G - Tyrese Haliburton, G - Andrew Nembhard, F - Aaron Nesmith, F - Pascal Siakam, C - Myles Turner
Cavaliers: G - Darius Garland, G - Donovan Mitchell, F - Max Strus, F - Evan Mobley, C - Jarrett Allen
Injury Report
Pacers: Isaiah Jackson - questionable (left hamstring strain), Bennedict Mathurin - out (right shoulder labral tear)
Cavaliers: Sam Merrill - doubtful (neck strain), Ty Jerome - out (right ankle surgery), Dean Wade - out (right knee sprain)
Last Meeting
March 18, 2024: The Cavaliers eked out a 108-103 win over the Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Indiana fought back from a nine-point deficit in the fourth quarter, tying the game at 103 on Tyrese Haliburton's floater with 2:05 remaining, but Caris LeVert answered with a fadeaway jumper on the other end and the Blue & Gold were unable to score the rest of the way.
Pascal Siakam led Indiana with 19 points and 12 rebounds in the loss. Haliburton had a double-double with 14 points and 12 assists, but went just 4-for-14 from the field and 1-for-9 from 3-point range. T.J. McConnell added 14 points off the bench on 7-for-11 shooting.
LeVert — starting in place of an injured Donovan Mitchell — tallied 23 points, eight rebounds, and 11 assists against his former team. Jarrett Allen had 23 points and nine rebounds, Marcus Morris Sr. scored 14 points off the bench on 4-of-5 3-point shooting, and Darius Garland registered 13 points and seven assists.
Noteworthy
- With a win on Friday, the Pacers would take the season series against the Cavs for the first time since the 2020-21 season. Cleveland won seven of eight games against Indiana over the last two seasons.
- Siakam needs four assists to reach 2,000 for his career.
- The Cavs' roster features three former Pacers: LeVert (2021-22), Georges Niang (2016-17), and Tristan Thompson (2022).
Broadcast Information (TV and Radio Listings >>)
TV: Bally Sports Indiana - Chris Denari (play-by-play), Quinn Buckner (analyst), Jeremiah Johnson (sideline reporter/host)
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan - Mark Boyle (play-by-play), Pat Boylan (studio host)
Tickets
The Pacers close out the regular season by hosting Dejounte Murray and the Atlanta Hawks for the annual Fan Appreciation Game presented by Kroger on Sunday, April 14 at 1:00 PM ET. Find Tickets >>