Victor Oladipo, Pacers Force Game 7 with Blowout Win vs. LeBron James, Cavs
The Indiana Pacers, on the heels of a resurgent performance from Victor Oladipo, defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 121-87 in Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday night to take their first-round Eastern Conference series the distance.
Oladipo—who managed 12 points on 2-of-15 shooting in Game 5 at Quicken Loans Arena—cycled back into a comfortable gear as the Pacers varied his usage, worked him off screens and allowed him to run free off the ball more as opposed to strictly trying to initiate early offense in the pick-and-roll.
The result was a much cleaner and efficient performance—and one that allowed Oladipo to expose cracks in Cleveland's porous defense through a variety of approaches, as Altitude Sports' Chris Dempsey observed:
With a Game 7 hanging in the balance, Oladipo finished with 28 points on 11-of-19 shooting (6-of-8 from three), 13 rebounds, 10 assists and four steals for his first career postseason triple-double.
"We beat a f---ing really good team," head coach Nate McMillan told reporters after the win. "Still kind of fired up here."
Oladipo was also instrumental in orchestrating Indiana's transition attack, which sliced Cleveland to shreds on a night when the Cavaliers were far too careless with the ball.
Not only did the Pacers parlay 15 Cleveland turnovers into 29 points, but they also outscored the defending Eastern Conference champions 35-12 in transition.
As if that wasn't enough, 'Dipo scribbled an exclamation point on Indiana's 35-point third quarter when he knifed through the lane and slammed home a dunk in the face of LeBron James:
James, to his credit, finished with a rock-solid 22 points, seven assists and five rebounds.
However, it wasn't a particularly pretty night for the four-time MVP.
Not only was he on the receiving end of Oladipo's rack attack, but he also caught an inadvertent elbow in the second quarter that opened a big cut over his left eye:
LeBron also had to be subjected to Lance Stephenson's (12 points, six assists) eclectic stylings off the bench, including a third-quarter shimmy that he followed with one of his signature air-guitar celebrations:
The two also continued to exchange physical pleasantries off the ball:
That back-and-forth is sure to continue in Game 7, and it could reach a fever pitch with a spot in the second round on the line.
The series' final game will tip off Sunday at Quicken Loans Arena as James hopes to avoid his first career exit in Round 1.
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