FILE – Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Cleveland Cavaliers speaks with teammates after defeating the Miami Heat at Miami-Dade Arena on March 08, 2023 in Miami, Florida. Megan Briggs/Getty Images/AFP
Donovan Mitchell scored 40 points, Evan Mobley posted a double-double of 14 points and 16 rebounds and the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the visiting Indiana Pacers 115-105 on Sunday.
Mitchell shot 14-of-25 from the floor and 9-of-12 from the free-throw line en route to his 12th 40-plus-point game of the season and second against the Pacers on the campaign.
However, it was the Cavaliers’ collective effort that ignited a pivotal fourth-quarter run, as Darius Garland scored five of his 20 points and Caris LeVert added five of his 15 points off the bench during a 12-4 spurt that gave Cleveland a lead it never relinquished.
Garland distributed a team-high six assists, doing his part to facilitate Cleveland finishing with four of its starters scoring at least 14 points. Jarrett Allen finished with 15 on 6-of-9 shooting from the floor and grabbed seven rebounds.
Donovan Mitchell drops 40.
For the third-straight game.His incredible season continues as the @cavs get win No. 49! pic.twitter.com/JwzahbLMuD
— NBA (@NBA) April 3, 2023
The win snapped a two-game skid for Cleveland (49-30), which maintained a three-game lead over New York for the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Indiana (34-45), eliminated from play-in contention, took the fight to Cleveland. The Pacers built a first-half lead of as many as 11 points and rode a balanced offensive attack.
Seven Pacers scored in double figures, led by Bennedict Mathurin’s 19 points. Mathurin also grabbed nine rebounds.
T.J. McConnell came off the bench to score 16 points and dish five assists, Andrew Nembhard posted 13 points and a game-high eight assists, and Jordan Nwora registered a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Aaron Nesmith’s 14 points, with 12 and 10 off the bench from Jalen Smith and Buddy Hield, rounded out Indiana’s well-distributed scoring.
The loss marked Indiana’s fifth in the last six games. Despite their even scoring, the Pacers were hamstrung by a shaky 43.4 percent output (36 of 83) from the floor. Cleveland went 44 of 90 (48.9 percent).