The Cavaliers came perilously close to yet another fourth-quarter meltdown today in the first game of the playoffs, briefly falling behind the Pacers late after being up by as many as 10 earlier in the final quarter.
The Pacers took their first and only second-half lead with a Jeff Teague three-pointer with three and a half minutes remaining. But LeBron James immediately answered with a dunk to tie, and the Pacers couldn’t take the lead back from there. Though Kyrie Irving came up with a block and a steal to cut two key Indiana scoring opportunities short, the Pacers finally made it a one-point game with 20 seconds left to play, courtesy of a Paul George three:
With Paul George double-teamed, the game-winning shot attempt went to CJ Miles, and his jumper missed. The Cavs won, 109-108, with Game 2 on Monday.