Cavs Complete Fourth Quarter Comeback In Win Over Pacers

Cleveland entered the fourth quarter with the game slipping out of their hands. However, they were able to outscore the Pacers in the fourth quarter to grab the 118-112 victory.

On the surface, the Cavs and Pacers are pretty similar teams. They are two teams of young players trying to establish themselves in the league while also looking to be a force in the playoffs. 

This set up a matchup that promised to be an entertaining one and it didn't disappoint. In the end, it was the Cavs who took the 118-112 victory, but it wasn't smooth sailing. 

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The Pacers finished the first half with a seven-point lead, representing either team's largest lead to that point. However, Indiana had a strong start to the second half which found themselves with a consistent 10-point lead while the Cavs dug themselves a hole to climb out of.

Through the first three quarters, the Cavs seemed tired and had no inspiration on defense. They routinely let Indiana's guard penetrate the paint and either score it themselves or dish it off to Myles Turner or Isaiah Jackson. The Pacers ended up scoring 62 points in the paint which is unacceptable for this Cleveland team. 

The Cavs have two seven-footers and the best defensive rating in the league. Allowing teams to score on them at will, especially, in the paint should never happen. Things seemed to change in the fourth quarter as the team started playing both offense and defense. 

Even though they were down double digits, the Cavs were only able to grab their first lead since the second quarter with three and a half minutes left in the game. They didn't look back after that. 

The reason that the Cavs were able to grab this win was thanks to Donovan Mitchell putting the team on his back yet again. He finished with 41 points and made eight threes. This is the eleventh time this season that he's made five or more three-pointers in a game. 

The fourth quarter is really where Mitchell shined. He scored 18 of his 41 in that quarter alone. 

Evan Mobley also stood out in Cleveland's late-game comeback. He finished with 16 points and was one rebound shy of another double-double. Mobley's defense during the Cavs' run was a crucial part of the comeback that led to the win.

The first three quarters were not how the Cavs want to play basketball. They did show resilience with how they were able to not give up and come back and grab the win in the fourth quarter. 

This game was the first of six the Cavs have at Rocket Mortgage Field House. They'll be back in action on Saturday night as they take on the Dallas Mavericks for the second time in only four days. 

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