Who’s playing
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Indiana Pacers
Current records: Cleveland 42-25, Indiana 38-30
How to watch
- When: Monday March 18, 2024 at 7 p.m. ET
- Or: Gainbridge Fieldhouse – Indianapolis, Indiana
- TV: Bally Sports Midwest-Indiana
- Follow: CBS Sports app
- Online broadcast: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket cost: $10.00
What there is to know
The Indiana Pacers will play at home against the Cleveland Cavaliers at 7 p.m. ET on Monday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The Cavaliers suffered a loss in their last game and will look to turn things around against the Pacers, who are coming off a win.
The Pacers and Nets game on Saturday was close at halftime, but the Pacers turned up the pressure in the second half with 62 points. Indiana beat the Nets 121-100.
Aaron Nesmith and Pascal Siakam were among the Pacers’ main playmakers as the former scored 16 points along with two steals and two blocks and the latter had a double-double with 28 points and 11 rebounds.
Meanwhile, the point spread may have favored the Cavaliers last Saturday, but not the final result. The game between them and Houston wasn’t a total blowout, but with Cleveland losing 117-103 on the road, it was damn close to turning into one. The Cavaliers trailed 98-73 at the end of the third quarter, which was just too difficult to recover from.
Despite the loss, the Cavaliers got a strong performance from Caris LeVert, who scored 21 points along with seven assists and three steals.
Indiana has been performing well recently as they have won three of their last four games, which has been a nice improvement to their 38-30 record this season. As for Cleveland, they have struggled recently as they have lost three of their last four games, which has taken a major dent in their 42-25 record this season.
In this competition, the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: the Pacers haven’t given up the ball easily this season, averaging just 12.6 turnovers per game. However, it’s not like the Cavaliers struggled in that department as they averaged just 12.6 turnovers per game. Given these competing forces, it will be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
The Pacers didn’t have too much breathing room in their matchup against the Cavaliers in the teams’ last game in November 2023, but they still came away with a 121-116 victory. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in this game was the Cavaliers’ Donovan Mitchell, who shot 4 of 7 from beyond the arc and nearly lost a double-double with 38 points and nine assists. Now that he has a second chance to win this game, will the Pacers still be able to contain Mitchell? Check CBSSports.com after the game to find out.
Odds
Indiana is a solid 7-point favorite against Cleveland, according to the latest NBA Odds.
Oddsmakers had a good idea of the line for this one, as the game opened with the Pacers as 8-point favorites.
The over/under is 224.5 points.
See NBA Pick for every game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get Picks Now.
History of the series
Cleveland has won 7 of its last 10 games against Indiana.
- November 3, 2023 – Indiana 121 vs. Cleveland 116
- October 28, 2023 – Indiana 125 vs. Cleveland 113
- April 2, 2023 – Cleveland 115 vs. Indiana 105
- February 5, 2023 – Cleveland 122 vs. Indiana 103
- December 29, 2022 – Indiana 135 vs. Cleveland 126
- December 16, 2022 – Cleveland 118 vs. Indiana 112
- March 8, 2022 – Cleveland 127 vs. Indiana 124
- February 11, 2022 – Cleveland 120 vs. Indiana 113
- February 6, 2022 – Cleveland 98 vs. Indiana 85
- January 2, 2022 – Cleveland 108 vs. Indiana 104
