Indianapolis, IN

Short-handed Cavs advance past Pacers

Published

2 years ago

March 19, 2024

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen each scored 23 points and the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers fended off a late push from the Indiana Pacers for a 108-103 win on Monday night.

Cleveland played without three regular starters, including star guard Donovan Mitchell, as the Cavs fight to hold onto a top-three seed in the Eastern Conference.

Cleveland led by as many as nine in the final quarter before Indiana pulled even with 2:05 remaining. LeVert drove baseline and then pulled up and swished a 9-foot fadeaway jumper to regain the lead. The Pacers didn’t score again.

“I’m very comfortable in those situations,” LeVert said. “I knew what I was going to.”

LeVert had 11 assists and eight rebounds. Allen had nine rebounds.

“We’ve got a lot of guys capable of contributing and making big plays down the stretch,” LeVert said. “Our defense really held up the last three quarters of the game and won us that game. That’s a good offensive team. We held them to what, 103? That says a lot about our defense.”

Mitchell, who averages a team-high 27.4 points, remains slowed by a left knee bruise that has bothered him since the break. It’s likely the Cavs will rest him a few more games so he’s ready for the postseason. Forward Evan Mobley (ankle) and guard Max Strus (knee) were also out.

The absences necessitated signing veteran forward Marcus Morris Sr. to a 10-day contract. Morris scored 14 off the bench in 20 minutes.

“It took toughness,” Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “It took resilience. It took togetherness to make sure that we never splintered, even with adversity and ups and downs.”

Pascal Siakam led the Pacers with 19 points and 12 rebounds. All-Star Tyrese Haliburton had 14 points and 12 assists. Reserve guard T.J. McConnell scored 14.

“We’re just not getting enough stops down the stretch,” Haliburton said. “And we’re not capitalizing enough offensively and that starts with me.”

The Cavs entered the night as the conference’s No. 3 seed, just behind the Milwaukee Bucks and ahead of the New York Knicks with a few weeks left in the regular season.

The Pacers dropped to the No. 7 seed with the loss, passed by the Philadelphia 76ers who beat the Miami Heat on Monday night.

“We did some good things to fight out of the hole,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. “But consistency wasn’t there. It’s a tough loss.”

The Pacers led by as much as 15 midway through the second quarter but then went scoreless for about four minutes.

“I honestly think we just didn’t really make any shots,” McConnell said. “We got a couple of good looks and they just didn’t go in.”

The Cavaliers surged with an 11-0 run to tie the game in the final minute of the first half.

“We’ve got to stay positive,” Carlisle said. “We’ve got to be more hungry than everybody we’re playing right now.”

UP NEXT

Cavaliers: Host Miami Heat on Wednesday.

Pacers: Visit Detroit Pistons on Wednesday.

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Indianapolis, IN

Philip Rivers fell one throw short of storybook ending in his couch-to-Colts return

Published

4 hours ago

December 15, 2025

Press Room

Philip Rivers fell one throw short of storybook ending in his couch-to-Colts return

He had one last throw left in that 44-year-old wing of his. For most of the afternoon, he’d been able to fool Father Time and frighten 68,771 Seattle Seahawks fans inside Lumen Field who’d come to bury Philip Rivers and, instead, watched him push their football team to the very brink of an impossible upset.

There had been a moment when it seemed Rivers might actually pull off the damn thing, too. That was with 1 minute and 55 seconds left in the game. The Colts led for so much of the game and were behind Seattle 15-13, but the ball was in the old man’s hands now. All day, he’d been careful and efficient. It got him a 13-3 lead at one point. Now, he needed to make a play.

And damned if he didn’t make a play.

Damned if he didn’t throw a 16-yard back-shoulder special to wide receiver Alec Pierce. Damned if that ball didn’t mean the Seahawks were now going to burn all of their timeouts because, in the NFL in 2025, just making it past midfield — as that throw did — means you’re in field goal range.

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Indianapolis, IN

Philip Rivers comes out of retirement for Indianapolis Colts: NFL world reacts

Published

16 hours ago

December 14, 2025

Press Room

Philip Rivers comes out of retirement for Indianapolis Colts: NFL world reacts

The Indianapolis Colts have cooled considerably as the season has progressed, going from the NFL’s best record to out of the playoff picture entering Week 15 action.

But one of today’s notable storylines is the return of quarterback Philip Rivers after five years away from the NFL. He’s on the Colts’ active roster as they prepare to play the Seattle Seahawks.

The 44-year-old was on Lumen Field hours before kickoff, taking mental reps.

Colts QB Daniel Jones suffered a season-ending injury last week, and backup Riley Leonard suffered a knee injury, though he remains on the active roster. With Brett Rypien the only other QB on their roster and list of available QBs lacking, the Colts called the last signal-caller to lead them in a playoff game (after the 2020 season).

His comeback has piqued the interest of a former Colts coach and players, his former teammates on the Chargers, former NFL quarterbacks and even those from outside football.