Indiana
Pacers stun shorthanded Cavaliers: NBA playoff Game 2 winners and losers
Cavaliers look to take down high-powered Pacers offense
USA TODAY Sports’ Lorenzo Reyes breaks down the second-round matchup between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Indiana Pacers.
Sports Pulse
It’s looking precarious for Donovan Mitchell and the shorthanded Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Pacers stunned the Cavs once again in the second round of the NBA playoffs, stealing Game 2 on Tuesday night, 120-119, after Indiana scored the game’s final eight points inside the final 50 seconds of the game.
The loss puts Cleveland in an 0-2 hole, with the series now heading to Indianapolis and Cleveland still needing to contend with injury issues. All-Stars Evan Mobley and Darius Garland and key bench player De’Andre Hunter missed Game 2, and their status for Game 3 is in question.
Here are the winners and losers from Game 2 of the second-round playoff series between the No. 4 Indiana Pacers and No. 1 Cleveland Cavaliers:
The Pacers don’t quit
Since 2005, teams carrying a seven-point lead in the final 48 seconds of the fourth quarter or overtime of postseason games, entering Tuesday night, had a combined record of 1,679-2 — a winning percentage of .999.
Not only did the Pacers make it 1,679-3, they also own two of those victories, with the other coming exactly one week ago, in their Game 5 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. It’s a remarkable statistic, and one that hints to a spectacular amount of luck, but it also is a marker of Indiana’s resiliency and resourceful play in the clutch.
Aaron Nesmith
The 25-year-old Nesmith scored 15 of his playoff career-high 23 points in the second half and was a massive spark the Pacers needed on both ends of the floor. Aside from his five drained 3-pointers, the plays he’ll be remembered for most are his putback dunk on a Pascal Siakam missed free throw and an offensive foul he drew just seconds later.
The dunk was the first basket of Indiana’s 8-0 run to close the game, and the foul created a key change of possession.
Donovan Mitchell
Needing to carry the Cavs, Mitchell was masterful. He scored 48 points on 15-of-30 shooting and added 9 assists. What was most impressive was the way Mitchell — as he continues to struggle with shots from the perimeter — relentlessly attacked Indiana in the paint.
Mitchell accounted for half of Cleveland’s 56 points in the paint all by himself. And when he didn’t finish, he often got to the line, converting 17-of-21 free throws.
Donovan Mitchell
His offensive dominance aside, Mitchell is a player whose teams have made the postseason each of the eight seasons he has played in the NBA. He has reached the conference semis four times. He has never advanced beyond that.
With the Cavaliers facing an 0-2 deficit and the series headed to Indiana, and with the Cavaliers facing injury issues, Mitchell is in danger of — again — seeing his postseason cut short.
Indiana’s ball security issues
The Pacers finished Tuesday’s game with 18 turnovers, which was one more than they had in Game 1. It’s tough to argue with a 2-0 lead, but turnovers — for a team that ranked second in the NBA in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.22) — persist as Indiana’s biggest issue this series.
The first quarter was particularly sloppy, with the Pacers committing nine turnovers. It was no surprise to see Indiana shoot 31.3% from the floor in the period, 12.5% from 3, score just 15 points and carry a 17-point deficit into the start of the second. If Cleveland needs a way back in the series, this would be the place to start.
Max Strus struggles in the second half
Nine of his 23 points did come after halftime, but Strus went cold from deep, going just 1-of-5 from 3-point range in the second half. His most egregious blunder, however, was unquestionably a careless pass he lobbed on an inbound when Cleveland was up three with 24.7 seconds to go.
Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard easily stole the pass, and it led to that wild Indiana finish.
Indiana
New judge lifts order blocking absentee ballots in Indiana Senate primary
(INDIANA CAPITAL CHRONICLE) — A special judge on Friday lifted an order blocking officials in three western Indiana counties from mailing absentee ballots in a Republican primary where President Donald Trump has endorsed a challenger to state Sen. Greg Goode.
Putnam County Superior Court Judge Charles Bridges took the step the same day he took over the dispute involving whether one of two women with the last name Wilson who filed to run against Goode in the primary should be removed from the primary ballot because of a 2010 criminal conviction.
The original judge on Wednesday had ordered the county clerks in Vigo, Clay and Sullivan counties to hold off on distributing absentee ballots involving the Republican Senate District 38 race.
Under state law, county election offices must start mailing requested absentee ballots on Saturday ahead of the May 5 primary.
Friday’s order from Bridges said that delaying those ballots would violate federal law and that the county court couldn’t prevent the clerks “from fulfilling their constitutional duties regarding the mailing of absentee ballots.”
Alexandra Wilson’s attorney argued before the Indiana Election Commission last month that she remained eligible since her 2010 guilty plea to a low-level Class D felony charge of resisting law enforcement at the age of 19 was accepted by a judge as a Class A misdemeanor.
The dispute has gained attention because of its possible impact on the campaign prospects of Brenda Wilson, a Vigo County Council member who has Trump’s endorsement against Goode following the senator’s December vote against the Indiana congressional redistricting plan.
The four-member Election Commission split 2-2 during a hearing last month on the challenge to Alexandra Wilson’s candidacy, with the tie vote leaving her name on the ballot.
Bridges set a hearing for Tuesday to review the Election Commission’s actions.
Alexandra Wilson’s attorney, Samantha DeWester, argued in a court filing that blocking mailing of primary ballots would wrongly hurt her client’s “ability to campaign and effectively run for elected office.”
Attorney Jim Bopp, who is a top political ally of Gov. Mike Braun and is supporting Brenda Wilson, is pursuing the legal case against Alexandra Wilson.
Bopp said he would not fight to keep the initial absentee ballots from going out with Alexandra Wilson’s name included.
“The vast majority of ballots that are going to be cast are, of course, in the future, with early voting and in-person voting,” Bopp told the Indiana Capital Chronicle. “That’s the most important thing to get right.”
Indiana
Indiana police increase patrols on 2 interstates for spring break
Indiana State Police will ramp up patrols along major roadways during spring break to “deter dangerous driving behavior,” the agency said in a news release March 22.
The effort is already underway. On March 20 and 21, ISP’s Lafayette District patrolled Interstate 65 and Interstate 70 for aggressive driving as students and families hit the roads for spring break travel.
The results, according to police, were 223 traffic stops, 25 calls for service, five crash investigations, five drug-related charges, three operating-while-intoxicated arrests, two reckless driving arrests, two suspended drivers and one vehicle pursuit.“These targeted patrols are about keeping Hoosiers and those traveling through our state safe,” Lt. Tom McKee, Lafayette district commander, said in a news release. “With increased traffic on our roadways, our troopers were out proactively addressing those violations to reduce crashes and keep our roadways safe.”
ISP did not say how long the increased patrols will continue.Contact breaking politics reporter Marissa Meador at mmeador@indystar.com or find her on X at @marissa_meador.
Indiana
San Antonio vs. Indiana, Final Score: Spurs got serious when they needed to, winning 134-119
The San Antonio Spurs have a habit of playing with their food, but the talent difference between them and their opponents makes up for it on most nights. Eventually, they flexed their muscles and there was nothing the visitors could do.
They overwhelmed the Indiana Pacers with paint pressure, which also opened up the outside game, and everyone who got time was a contributor. Victor Wembanyama was like an angry killer wasp on defense, constantly harassing ball handlers, racking up four of his five blocks in the first half. Everything was going smoothly, but his teammates started allowing too much penetration, and their 21-point lead was reduced to eight. It was just three players doing most of the heavy lifting offensively for the Pacers, and the Spurs spent the rest of the game, denying them from getting within striking distance.
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