The Cavaliers finally showed up looking like a team that remembers who it’s supposed to be.
All that “cruise control” talk from the locker room? Jaylon Tyson calling out the hunger level? Donovan Mitchell wanting more urgency?
It came spilling onto the floor in Indianapolis, where Cleveland punched the Pacers early and never bothered letting them up. Final score: Cavs 135, Pacers 119, and honestly, it felt more lopsided than that.
This wasn’t the shorthanded Cavs sneaking by a four-win Indiana team missing Tyrese Haliburton. This was Cleveland walking into a quiet Gainbridge Fieldhouse, grabbing the game by the throat in the first two minutes, and refusing to hand it back.
One lead change. One tie. Forty-eight minutes of doing exactly what a contender is supposed to do.
And the response started with the guy who lit the match on Sunday.
Tyson didn’t just talk about hunger. He played like he was starving. Twenty-seven points, 11 rebounds, four assists, and a physical edge the Cavs have been missing most nights. He hit 10 of 13 shots and 4-of-5 from deep, and played like he wanted every loose ball more than everyone else.
Mitchell did the rest. The MVP candidate dropped 43 in 34 minutes and buried every Pacers run before it had a chance to matter. When Indiana cut the lead to six late in the third, Mitchell opened the fourth with his own 5–0 burst, then the Cavs slammed the door.
And they did it with half the roster in street clothes.
Darius Garland, Max Strus, Jarrett Allen, Sam Merrill, Larry Nance Jr., Lonzo Ball — all out. Didn’t matter.
Coach Kenny Atkinson said before tipoff that he could feel the frustration building in the group and actually liked it. He thought it meant they were close to turning a corner.
He was right.
The Cavs (13-9) didn’t blink. Didn’t sag. Didn’t let up. For once, it wasn’t the bench rescuing the starters or a late scramble trying to erase a sloppy stretch. It was Cleveland, wire to wire, looking like a team that’s tired of hearing about what it isn’t and ready to remind the league what it should be.
A complete performance. A necessary one. And the kind of win that tells you Sunday’s irritation wasn’t just talk. It had teeth.
Tyson finished with 27 points and 11 rebounds for his second career double-double. Evan Mobley and De’Andre Hunter added 13 points apiece, and rookie Tyrese Proctor had 12.
The Pacers (4-17) were led by Pascal Siakam and Andrew Nembhard, who scored 26 and 21, respectively.
Cleveland will play its next three at home, beginning Wednesday against the Portland Trail Blazers.
Cavs finally snap out of it, hammer Pacers behind Donovan Mitchell’s 43
