LeBron sits, Pacers win
By TYLER SMITH (@TylerSmith_ISL)
ISL Editor
(Photo by Pacers Sports and Entertainment)
INDIANAPOLIS — “Bankers Life Fieldhouse has been tough my whole career.”
Those were comments from LeBron James on Tuesday night after the Cavaliers beat the Raptors. Less than 24 hours later, and Cleveland decided to rest their star instead of having him play on a back-to-back, much to the dismay of the high-paying fans in attendance.
With or without LeBron, the defending champs are a good team. The Pacers were able to pass the test, defeating the Cavaliers 103-93, winning their second consecutive game for the first time this season, and improving to 6-6 on the year.
“I wanted to make sure our guys didn’t have an emotional letdown,” Coach Nate McMillan said. “They’re still a dangerous team without LeBron. They aren’t as predictable when he’s not on the floor. We executed our game plan.”
Paul George led the Pacers in scoring with 21 points. The Pacers were a plus+24 on the night when Paul George was on the floor.
After an uninspiring week last week, the Pacers defense has picked things up in the two game win streak this week.
“We stopped switching so much, because it was making us soft,” McMillan said. “We’ve gone back to traditional defense, working hard and fighting through.”
Jeff Teague had another strong night with 20 points and eight assists.
“Jeff is a scoring point guard,” said McMillan. “He has to balance his attacks while also getting everyone else involved. He has to pick his spots. He did a good job of that tonight.”
Myles Turner agreed: “When he’s (Teague) on, other teams can’t just focus on Paul, or me, or anybody else. That’s what makes our offense so dynamic.”
Without LeBron on the court, the Cavaliers had to rely even more on Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. They did their part, combining for 51 points on 21-of-43 from the field. The problem was, they were the only players in double-figures for Cleveland. All other players not named Kyrie and Kevin combined to shoot 33% (14-of-43).
“We’re slowly building day by day,” Myles Turner said. “We’ve got to keep the ball rolling. To win three you’ve got to win two.”
Turner finished with 12 points, eight rebounds, and four blocked shots. He also only committed two fouls on the night.
The Pacers are now 6-1 at home on the season, and still have four of their next five games in their building. They can worry about the road struggles a little later. For now, it’s all about building some momentum and trying to get back over .500. They have a date with the Phoenix Suns on Friday night.
