After a day off, the Pacers returned to action in the 2018 NBA Summer League on Monday, playing their third game in four days.
TJ Leaf scored 20 points and Indiana got a strong performance from second-round pick Alize Johnson, who amassed 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting and seven rebounds in Monday's contest.
But it wasn't quite enough to overcome the Cleveland duo of Cedi Osman and Collin Sexton, who combined for 46 points and 10 assists to lead the Cavaliers to a 93-88 win at Cox Pavilion.
Offensively, the Pacers put together an uneven performance, tallying six more turnovers than assists.
"We had 17 turnovers, our last game we had eight turnovers," Pacers Summer League coach Steve Gansey said after the loss. "That's the game. In a 40-minute game, you've got to have 10 or less turnovers. You've just got to be smart."
PHOTO GALLERY: Pacers 88, Cavaliers 93 »
Both of the Pacers' two 2018 draft picks got off to strong starts on Monday afternoon.
First-round pick Aaron Holiday scored five of Indiana's first six points, knocking down an early jumper and then later converting a three-point play.
Johnson then provided a nice spark off the bench, crashing the glass and playing with energy. He scored seven points in the opening quarter, including a 3-pointer from the left corner, to help the Blue & Gold out to a 24-21 lead.
"Coming off the bench, being a spark plug right now for my team has been really helpful," Johnson. "I'm just trying to contribute as much as I can."
In one sequence midway through the opening frame, Holiday came up with a steal, then dished back to a hustling Johnson for a basket plus the foul.
The Pacers fell behind in the second quarter despite seven points in the frame from 2017 first-round pick TJ Leaf, and trailed 47-42 at halftime. The chief reason for the deficit was poor shooting, as Indiana shot just 37.5 percent in the first half, while Cleveland converted 52.8 percent of its attempts.
The start of the second half featured a memorable duel between Holiday and fellow point guard Sexton, whom the Cavs took with the eighth overall pick in last month's draft.
Sexton scored five quick points at the start of the third quarter to help Cleveland open up a 52-44 lead. But Holiday responded with seven points of his own to key an 11-2 Indiana run that put the Pacers back in front.
"Those are going to be two top point guards in this league," Gansey said. "It was kind of fun to watch."
Second-year forward Osman then put together his own personal showcase, scoring seven points, blocking Holiday, and drawing a charge in a little over a two-minute span to give Cleveland a five-point cushion. Cleveland maintained that advantage for remainder of the period, taking a 69-64 lead into the fourth quarter.
Johnson had another strong showing in the opening minutes of the final frame, scoring eight points on 4-of-5 shooting and showing a high level of assertion offensively, taking defenders off the dribble and attacking the rim.
"He got going for a little bit," Gansey said. "He just needs more time and more reps out there playing."
Nevertheless, the Cavaliers remained in front by multiple possessions for much of the fourth quarter. The Pacers twice cut the deficit to two points, but never could quite get over the hump as the Cavaliers pulled away late.
Leaf had 20 points and nine rebounds, but struggled again offensively, going just 8-for-21 from the field. Holiday also was inconsistent on that end, scoring 12 points and dishing out eight assists, but going just 4-for-14 from the field (1-for-7 from 3-point range) and committing eight turnovers.
"I had too many turnovers today," Holiday said. "I've got to go back and watch film and shoot layups. I had the layup, but I tried to pass it out (and committed turnovers)."
Second-year guard Edmond Sumner was the only other Pacers player to reach double figures. The former Xavier Musketeer scored 14 points and knocked down 6-of-11 shots, including 2-of-3 from 3-point range.
Osman led all scorers with 25 points to go along with six rebounds and six assists. Sexton added 21 points on 9-of-17 shooting for Cleveland in the win.
Indiana will begin tournament play on either Wednesday or Thursday. The tournament is single-elimination, but all teams that lose their first-round game will play a consolation game on Friday.