The Indiana Pacers will take on the Cleveland Cavaliers tonight in the opener of a home-and-home set from Quicken Loans Arena.
The two teams will meet again Friday in Indiana and have split a pair of meetings already this season. Cleveland halted a six-game losing streak in the series with a 98-87 victory on Feb. 15 at the Q.
Indiana is seeded third in the Eastern Conference -- two games ahead of Boston -- and has won five of six games, including a 103-98 victory versus the Toronto Raptors on Monday. Danny Granger and George Hill scored 18 points apiece to lead the Pacers, while Paul George netted 15 points and Leandro Barbosa added 14 in a winning effort.
"We had the energy and the knockout punch. But they got up and came back," said George. "We were able to beat them down and not play lackadaisical and were to able to pull a win out."
Pacers guard Darren Collison was out with a sore groin and is doubtful for tonight's game. He is averaging 10.7 points and 4.9 assists this season.
The Pacers are 16-14 away from home.
Cleveland has won two of three games since losing nine in a row and recorded a 103-90 triumph versus Charlotte the previous time out on Tuesday.
Lester Hudson finished with 25 points, eight rebounds and six assists, while Anthony Parker totaled 19 points and Antawn Jamison added 17 for the Cavaliers, who shot 48.2 percent and buried 11 of 19 three-pointers.
"Good win. I thought our guys came to play, obviously, from start to finish," said Cavs head coach Byron Scott. "We had a little bit of a lull in the third quarter, to start it, but really picked it up. The second unit, I thought, was fantastic."
A loss tonight by the Pacers would give the Central Division crown to the Chicago Bulls. Meanwhile, Cleveland will be eliminated from postseason play with a loss or a New York win in Milwaukee.
The Cavs hope to build on their 10-18 home record tonight and are still without Rookie of the Year candidate Kyrie Irving because of a shoulder injury. He has missed four straight and five of six games.
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