INDIANAPOLIS — If Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals between the Indiana Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers was a boxing match, the referee would have stopped the fight early.
The Pacers blew out the Cavaliers, 129-109, with a dominant first half to take a commanding 3-1 series lead at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Sunday night.
Forward Pascal Siakam led Indiana with 21 points, while center Myles Turner and forward Obi Toppin both contributed 20 points. Point guard Tyrese Haliburton bounced back from a four-point effort in Game 3 with 11 points.
The Pacers avoided the sluggish start that hurt them on Friday, as Turner and Toppin hit back to back 3-pointers to put Indiana up 22-10 with just over five minutes to play in the first quarter. Center Thomas Bryant’s three put the Pacers up 19, but they settled for a 38-23 advantage after one.
Indiana continued the onslaught in the second quarter behind Turner. The longest-tenured Pacers’ player hit three 3-pointers during a 19-2 run to end the half to put the game completely out of reach before the teams went to the locker room. Guard Aaron Nesmith’s jumper at the buzzer made the game 80-39 at halftime.
The Pacers’ largest lead was 44 points early in the third quarter.
The physicality continued to ramp up between the two teams as guard Bennedict Mathurin and De’Andre Hunter got into an altercation in the first quarter. Mathurin appeared to hit Hunter before the Cleveland forward retaliated by shoving him to the floor. Mathurin was ejected, while Hunter and Turner received technical fouls.
Star Cavaliers’ guard Donovan Mitchell did not return to the game after halftime with a left ankle problem.
The Pacers can close out the series in Game 5 in Cleveland on Tuesday night to earn a berth in the Eastern Conference Finals for the second straight season.