Cavs collapse as Pacers surge to stunning Game 2 win on Tyrese Haliburton’s 3 with 1.1 seconds left

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The Cleveland Cavaliers were on the verge of tying their second-round series with the Indiana Pacers at 1-1 Tuesday night. But the Pacers surged back to stun the Cavaliers for a 120-119 win on an answered Tyrese Haliburton prayer.

With the win, the Pacers have a 2-0 series lead after two wins on Cleveland’s home court.

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Cleveland, the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, opened a 32-15 first-quarter lead while playing without injured starters Evan Mobley and Darius Garland, and reserve De’Andre Hunter. It extended the lead to 20 points in the third quarter.

But the Pacers flustered the Cavaliers’ offense late and took their first lead of the half on a Haliburton 3-pointer in the game’s final two seconds. It turned out to be the game-winner.

How Haliburton got his shot

Before the 3, Haliburton went to the line with the Pacers trailing 119-116 and 12.1 seconds remaining after Donovan Mitchell fouled him on a layup attempt.

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Haliburton made the first. He then missed the second but got his own rebound and pulled the ball back beyond the 3-point arc. He didn’t release the ball until he hit the game-winning bucket.

As the clock ticked down, Haliburton stepped back and pulled up from 3 from the top of the key over the outstretched left hand of Ty Jerome. The bucket sank through the net with 1.1 seconds remaining, stunning the Cleveland crowd. Sam Merrill’s heave from beyond half court in response as the final buzzer sounded didn’t stand a chance.

Mitchell’s big night spoiled

The comeback spoiled a 48-point effort from Mitchell, who was gassed and made multiple miscues down the stretch. The Pacers capitalized on Mitchell’s and Cleveland’s mistakes to mount an 8-0 run in the game’s final 47.2 seconds.

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Haliburton finished the night with 19 points, nine rebounds, four assists and the game-winning bucket, his second made 3 on two attempts. He did so on a night when Cleveland fans serenaded him with a chant of “overrated,” echoing an anonymous NBA player poll recently deemed Haliburton as the most overrated player in the league.

‘This is what I do’

Once again Tuesday, Haliburton proved his detractors wrong in dramatic fashion. Haliburton was mobbed by his teammates after the game and spoke with TNT about his shot.

“I just saw an opportunity. I missed the free throw. Somebody had a beautiful tip. I grabbed the rebound. And there was no chance I was passing it down the line. This is what I do. Just trying to make a big play.

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The series now shifts the Indianapolis, where the Pacers can clinch a sweep with two wins at home.

Cleveland was in control throughout

Until the game’s final minutes, there were few moments Tuesday night in which the Pacers appeared to have a chance. The Cavaliers put the clamps on the Pacers from the opening tip in a dominant first quarter that limited Indiana to 15 points.

The Pacers shot 1 of 8 from 3 in the first quarter and turned the ball over nine times.

Meanwhile, Mitchell repeatedly scored at will at the basket against a Pacers front line of Myles Turner and Pascal Siakam that was helpless to stop him. Each time Indiana threatened a rally, Mitchell was there to stop the run with a layup or dunk at the basket.

When he didn’t score at the rim, Mitchell regularly drew a whistle while earning 21 trips to the free throw line. He finished the game with nine rebounds and four assists in addition to his 48 points while shooting 15 of 30 from the field and 17 of 21 from the line. He struggled from deep on a 1-of-7 effort.

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On a night where the Cavaliers asked him to do it all, the ask proved to be too much.

Cleveland’s collapse

The Cavaliers entered halftime with a 61-50 lead. They extended the advantage to 81-61 with 6:51 remaining in the third quarter.

But from there, the Pacers chipped away as their once-stagnant offense returned to the form that made it one of the league’s most lethal in the regular season and in the first round of the playoffs.

A Bennedict Mathurin bucket cut the Cavaliers lead to single digits 98-89 with 9:38 remaining. From there the Cavaliers were on their heels. And in the final minute, they collapsed as the Pacers turned a 119-112 deficit into a 120-119 win.

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With 47.1 seconds remaining, Siakam missed a pair of free throws. But Aaron Nesmith came running in from the backcourt for a put-back dunk over Mitchell that left Mitchell sprawled on the court.

The dunk cut Cleveland’s lead to 119-114.

Mitchell gathered himself after spending several moments on the court in pain. He then gave the ball right back to the Pacers on Cleveland’s ensuing possession.

Nesmith trapped Mitchell along the sideline after Cleveland’s inbounds pass. Mitchell then raked him across the face with his elbow in an effort to create space.

The elbow could have and probably should have drawn a flagrant foul on Mitchell. Instead, it was deemed just a personal foul, which was good enough to give the ball back to the Pacers, who cut the lead to 119-116 with a Siakam layup.

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Max Strus turned the ball over on a bad inbounds pass on the ensuing Cavaliers possession, setting up Haliburton for his late-game heroics. It added to to a shocking collapse for the Cavaliers that could very well mark the end of their championship hopes.

Haliburton’s injury scare

Haliburton played much of the game after tweaking his wrist in the first half. He was in obvious pain after a collision in the second quarter. He ran off the court clutching his wrist and didn’t get back on defense on the ensuing Cavaliers possession.

But Haliburton didn’t leave the game. He finished the half and came back after halftime with heavy tape on his wrist.

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The TNT broadcast reported that he underwent X-rays that halftime, but the results of those X-rays weren’t known. Haliburton had his wrist re-taped in third quarter and continued to play before securing the game winning shot.

Haliburton said after the, “I’ll be all right.”

Will injured Cavs return in Indiana?

The Cavaliers are in serious trouble with their 0-2 deficit. Their prospects are further dimmed as long as Mobley, Garland and Hunter remain sidelined. The status of each moving forward is unclear.

None of the three were ruled out until just before tipoff Tuesday night. Garland missed his fourth straight game with a sprained big toe that he sustained during Cleveland’s first-round victory over the Miami Heat.

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Mobley and Hunter each suffered their injuries late in Game 1 on Sunday. Mobley rolled his left ankle when he landed on Turner’s foot after a shot in the lane.

Hunter dislocated his thumb when he landed hard on the court after a block by Bennedict Mathurin that should have been called a foul. Mathurin cleanly blocked Hunter’s dunk attempt with this right hand, but shoved him in the chest with his left hand while both were in midair.

Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson argued on Monday that both plays that left his players injured should have resulted in fouls, but neither did.

Game 3 is scheduled for Friday night in Indianapolis.

This news was originally published on this post .

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