You can read a full report from today’s game here:
Final thoughts
You didn’t actually think LeBron James was going to let his team get eliminated in the first round, did you? Here’s what he ended up with: 45 points (!), 9 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 steals in 43 minutes. The most incredible thing about that line is that it’s not shocking in the slightest, this is exactly what we’ve come to expect from LeBron when his team is on the brink.
That will do it for us here for his particular liveblog, but please keep with us throughout the next few months for continued NBA playoffs coverage here at the Guardian. Ciao!
Cavaliers advance!
The Cavaliers move on to face the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference sem-finals. Considering how tough the Pacers played them throughout this season, they’re going to need to step up their game (i.e. LeBron can’t just do it by himself like he’s one these past two weeks).
The Cleveland Cavaliers have eliminated the Indiana Pacers
Pacers 101-105 Cavaliers, FINAL
LeBron gets to the line and makes one of two. There’s just a tiny slit of light left for Indiana. Young tips in a Sabonis shot to cut the Pacers’ lead down to 4. Hill makes two free throws and Oladipo makes an utterly meaningless three-pointer to end the game. That will do it for the Pacers. The Cavaliers survive a brutal seven game series.
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Pacers 96-102, 30.2, 4th quarter
Oladipo makes a lineup, it’s just a four point game. Could the Pacers pull a rabbit out of their hat?
Er, probably not, Korver finds LeBron for an emphatic layup. That feels like game.
Pacers 94-100 Cavaliers, 1:31, 4th quarter
LeBron calmly drains two free throws. Sabonis gets to the line and makes two of his own.
Pacers 92-98 Cavaliers, 2:31, 4th quarter
Thompson gets to the line, makes one of two. The Pacers are still alive and they’re still fighting. Oladipo hits a jumper. Six point game but the Pacers now are also facing the clock.
Pacers 90-97 Cavaliers, 4:09, 4th quarter
Pacers trying to go on one last run. Collison, who has been phenomenal the whole game, briefly quiets the crowd by knocking down a shot of his own.
Pacers 88-97 Cavaliers, 4:33, 4th quarter
A goaltending call on an altered shot by LeBron gifts the Cavaliers an extra two points, not that they needed them. Myles Turner gets to the line and makes two free throws, they’re going to need more of that if they have any hope of surviving this.
Instead, J.R. Smith gets to the line and he makes both.
Pacers 86-93 Cavaliers, 5:48, 4th quarter
The Pacers are just treading water at this point. An Oladipo layup cuts the Cavaliers down to
Pacers 79-91 Cavaliers, 7:35, 4th quarter
Myles Turner scores and Thaddeus Young makes a free throw and that at least stops the bleeding. Unfortunately for them, LeBron is back in the game.
And Kevin Love hits another critical three. This one’s slipping away for the Pacers.
Pacers 76-86 Cavaliers, 8:41, 4th quarter
A Sabonis dunk briefly cuts down the Cavaliers’ lead but Love answers with a jumper. Jeff Green (remember him?) makes to free throws.
Pacers 74-82 Cavaliers, 9:41, 4th quarter
So, that taking advantage of LeBron’s time on the bench idea? The Pacers instead fell behind. Kevin Love hits a huge three, the biggest shot of the game made by anyone. The crowd is buzzed, the Pacers are rattled. They take a timeout.
Pacers 74-79 Cavaliers, 10:15, 4th quarter
LeBron’s out of the game for a spell, he’s been out there for just about all of it. Sabonis fouls George Hill in the process of shooting a three. Not the ideal turn of events, that. Hill makes all three free throws.
End of the 3rd quarter
Pacers 74-76 Cavaliers, end of the 3rd quarter
Thaddeus Young breaks up the duel by making a basket that cuts the Cleveland lead back to one.
LeBron doesn’t even blink. He makes another three-pointer. Young, who is low-key having a solid game, silences the crowd with a dunk. The two teams trade free throws for the remainder of the third. When the dust settles, the Cavaliers have just a two point lead at the end of three quarters.
Pacers 68-71 Cavaliers, 2:23, 3rd quarter
And now it’s an official duel between LeBron and Oladipo: LeBron dunks, Oladipo dunks and makes a jumper, LeBron gets on the line and makes two more free throws.
Pacers 64-64 Cavaliers, 4:37, 3rd quarter
LeBron gets to the line, making one two free throws. George Hill, in the game for the first time I believe, gets on the line too. He makes both of his free throws too add to the Cavaliers lead.
But all too briefly. Oladipo makes an insanely long three to tie up the game.
Pacers 61-61 Cavaliers, 6:16, 3rd quarter
Victor Oladipo makes one of two free throws. J.R. Smith then opts for the “giveth” part of “JR taketh and JR giveth away,” knocking down a three that ties up the game.
Pacers 59-58 Cavaliers, 6:38, 3rd quarter
Tristan Thompson make a layup but *just* when it looks like the Cavaliers are going to take control of the game, the Pacers make their stand. Thaddeus Young makes one of two free throws and then makes a three.
Oh there’s the J.R. Smith moment we knew was inevitable. He turns over the ball and the Pacers take advantage. Bojan Bogdanovic his a second straight three-poiner and, wow look at that, the Pacers have a genuine lead! Wow.
Pacers 52-56 Cavaliers, 9:11, 3rd quarter
Indiana finally starts cooking here. Myles Turner hits a shot and... Oh hey Victor Oladipo is back from outer space. He gets fouled, gets on the line, makes both and then his a long three-pointer. It’s a four point game again! They’re going to need more of that from Vic.
Second half begins!
Pacers 45-56 Cavaliers, 10:30, 3rd quarter
The Pacers immediately put Tristan Thompson on the free throw line, where he hits both. Collison is still doing the “only guy on the Pacers who is scoring” act with a layup. Victor Oladipo is apparently vanishing into the ether.
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And Indiana? Darren Colison has been keeping the Pacers afloat with his 17 points. Victor Oladipo has just five. Ouch.
Halftime thoughts
What’s the story of the game? Here is LeBron after the first two quarters: He’s played all 24 minutes and has accumulated 26 points on 11-16 shooting and has 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 assists.
So yeah, that’s probably the story of the game. Or at least the story of this first half.
End of the 1st half
Pacers 43-54 Cavaliers, end of the 1st half
The Pacers come out of their timeout but Collison is the only one who mentally checks back in. No else scores for the Pacers for the rest of the second quarter. Meanwhile the Cavaliers are going on a US Olympic team tear. Even J.R. Smith is calmly swishing three-pointers.
Indiana keeps the Cavaliers from scoring for the last minute, which is kind of moral victory at least. Collison hits the final bucket of the half, it cuts the Cavaliers down to 11 points. it feels like it should be more.
Pacers 37-49 Cavaliers, 3:38, 2nd quarter
They respond rather well, it looks like. LeBron either makes or gets an assist on what feels like a zillion straight field goal.
Pacers 31-35 Cavaliers, 6:54, 2nd quarter
There’s the first big Pacers run. Somehow they manage to cut the lead down to 4. Let’s see how Cleveland responds.
Pacers 21-35, 9:10, 2nd quarter
The good news for the Pacers is that Trevor Booker gets the scoring going in the second quarter by tipping in a missed Domantas Sabonis shot.
The bad news is everything else. It’s all Cavaliers from there.
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Pacers 19-31 Cavaliers, end of the 1st
This could get ugly super-quick. As they hit the final minute, Lance Stephenson (who is apparently still in the league) hits a three-pointer. LeBron makes a jumper with the shock clock hitting zero and the Cavaliers have a 31-19 lead over the Pacers after one quarter.
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Pacers 16-26 Cavaliers, 2:08, 1st quarter
Korver hits a long three, Darren Collison makes a jump shot. LeBron makes a shot to increase the Cavaliers lead to 10 points and the Pacers are struggling just to keep, well, Pace.
Pacers 9-16 Cavaliers, 4:43, 1st quarter
And the Tristan Thompson move immediately pays dividends. He gets to the free throw line after being fouled and makes them both count. He then makes a nifty layup himself
And the Tristan Thompson move immediately pays dividends. He gets to the free throw line after being fouled and makes them both count. He then makes a nifty layup himself
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Pacers 7 - 12 Cavaliers, 6:15, 1st quarter
Victor Oladipo finds Collison who finally knocks down the first three for the Pacers as Indiana goes n a run of their own. Collison sets up Thaddeus Young for an easy bucket near the hoop.
And then J.R. Smith hits a long free which causes the home crowd here to burst into loud cheers
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Pacers 2 - 9 Cavaliers, 7:43, 1st quarter
Well that escalated quite quickly. The Cavaliers go on a 7-0 tear and the Pacers have to use their first timeout. The Pacers have yet to make a field goal, they’re launching hopeless three-pointers and Cleveland is making them pay.
Pacers 2 - 2 Cavaliers, 9:17, 1st quarter
LeBron drives to the rim for a layup to start the scoring. Shortly afterwards, the Pacers Darren Collison gets fouled and goes to the line where he knocks down two free throws to tie up the game.
Opening tip!
Tristan Thompson is back in the starting lineup, he should be able to help the Cavaliers. One would hope, at least. And it’s opening tip already.
And we’re off!
Hey all and welcome to Game 7 of the first round playoff series between the Indiana Pacers and the Cleveland Cavaliers. It feels a bit strange that we’re here, but the Cavaliers are a loss away from being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. It’s shocking because LeBron James’s team has emerged from the Eastern Conference every season since he joined the Miami Heat back in 2010.
LeBron has been great. His teammates, not so much. He’s going to need help if he wants to hold off a shocking upset by the Indiana Pacers. Can the unthinkable actually happen? Can the Pacers pull off an upset? Well, we won’t have to wait too long to find out. Game 7 is just a few minutes away.
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Hunter will be here shortly.
