Cavaliers Star Backcourt Leads Team To Gritty Win vs. Pacers

Just like that, the Cleveland Cavaliers are back in the win column following their 127-117 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night.

The final score doesn't do this matchup justice. The Cavs and Pacers were locked into a gritty, tight battle all night long until Cleveland finally started to pull away in the fourth quarter.

Cleveland's star backcourt was the key difference-maker in this matchup. Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell took over when the game called for it, and the Pacers had little options to stop them.

Mitchell ensured that the Wine and Gold had a strong offensive start, scoring 27 points in the first half, 19 of which came in the early minutes of the first quarter.

To understand why this start was so important for the Cavaliers, we have to go back to Cleveland's loss to the Pacers on Sunday. Kenny Atkinson believed that his team's relaxed mindset in the second half contributed to its loss to the Pacers on Sunday.

Mitchell wasn't going to let that happen again, and his coach took notice of it.

"Really, Donovan set the tone. It was one of those nights where he wasn't going to let us lose. I knew that from shootaround," said Atkinson after the game.

Jan 14, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) shoots the ball while Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam (43) defends in the first half at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

While Mitchell opened up the game for the Cavaliers, Darius Garland took over and put the game away in the fourth quarter, and as Atkinson said, "closed it out as he usually does."

DG played almost the entire fourth quarter after sitting on the bench earlier in the game, nursing an apparent knee injury.

Garland was phenomenal down the stretch and scored 13 points in the fourth. He used his speed and shiftiness to drive to the paint, and the Pacers had nothing to stop DG, no matter what they threw at him.

This victory is a perfect example of why the Cavaliers are so tough to beat. Cleveland has so many scorers and playmakers on the roster that opposing defenses can't guard them all.

Mitchell and Garland took advantage of that against Indiana, and it led to another Cavaliers victory.