INDIANAPOLIS — Despite building the largest halftime lead in playoff history en route to a dominant 129-109 Game 4 victory that gave his team a commanding 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals, Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle wasn't ready to take note of the accomplishment.
«We haven't done anything yet,» Carlisle said Sunday night.
Carlisle continued to emphasize how the Pacers have been the underdog in every game of their second-round series with the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers and said he wants his team to maintain that mindset despite being one win away from a second straight conference finals appearance.
«We're going to keep approaching this like we have everything to prove,» Carlisle said. «We know people don't believe in us… the things about the scores and all that, it's meaningless. This game is now history. So, we got to stay in the present moment as much as we can try to maintain an edge.»
The Pacers never trailed in Sunday's game, racing out to an 80-39 halftime advantage. Indiana forced Cleveland into more turnovers (14) than it allowed field goals (eight). The 41-point lead tied the largest in NBA postseason history, matching the 2017 Cavaliers who led the Boston Celtics by 41 during an Eastern Conference finals game, according to ESPN Research.
«Complete domination by them,» Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said. «That's kind of the story. In every facet.»
Cleveland picked up its first win of the series in Friday's Game 3, aided by the return of Evan Mobley, Darius Garland and De'Andre Hunter. The Cavs also flummoxed the Pacers during the second quarter of that game with a 3-2 zone defense that held them to 8-for-21 (38%) shooting and 1-for-7 from 3.
The Pacers had an answer Sunday, shooting 9-for-15
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