Game 1 of the Cavaliers and Pacers first round series is in the books and we couldn’t have asked for a better intro into the postseason. C.J. Miles came up short on a chance to win the game as Paul George was double teamed in the final seconds, giving Cleveland the first lead of the series to go up 1-0.
The Cavaliers came out on top as expected 109-108, but the playoff hungry Indiana Pacers didn’t go down without a fight. Paul George and long time teammate Lance Stephenson combined for 45 points to show the Cavaliers that their road to 3 straight finals won’t be an easy one.
Playoff LeBron showed up along with the playoff Cavs who are already playing their best basketball since last postseason. The Cavaliers big 3 combined for 72 points, while LeBron James showed why he’s the best point forward in the NBA earning his 88th double-double (32 points & 13 assists) of his postseason career.
This game was a tale of offenses as no team scored less than 25 in a quarter until the fourth. It should be expected that Paul George will continue to play with the whole city of Indiana on his back for the rest of the series and the Cavaliers will keep playing the basketball that got them to two straight NBA Finals.
If the Pacers can keep up this intensity for the rest of the series, there’s no telling how interesting they can make this series. Game 2 is on Monday on TNT as the Pacers will try to even up the series before they go back to Indiana on Thursday.
