A message to all NBA playoff teams: if you want to get your hands on the Larry O'Brien trophy, you or someone else has to come into Quicken Loans Arena and beat the Cleveland Cavaliers. And, judging from the Cavaliers' body of work there this year, that will be no easy task. The Cavaliers wrapped it all up with a gutsy performance against a solid young Indiana Pacers team who got a dynamic performance from All-Star Danny Granger and rookie Brandon Rush.

At the Pacers' pace: A large chunk of this one was played at Indiana's pace, especially the first and third quarters. The Pacers put up 27 and 37 points in those quarters, and they used one-on-one matchups to get easy buckets from Granger and Rush. Granger, who LeBron has had some success with holding in check, racked up an astonishing 38 points on 12-of-28 shooting, and Rush was 11-of-17 from the field for his 27 points. Other than a 12-point fourth quarter from Troy Murphy (17 points, 13 boards), it was a two-man show for the Pacers.

Taking Care of Family Business: The Cavaliers won this one because they stuck together as a team and the starting five really carried them through. There was a moment in the game where each of the starters made a huge impact on the game. Whether it was LeBron's scoring barrage, Mo Gotti's dagger that sealed the deal, Delonte's attacking the rim, Andy's erratic hustle, or Z's double-double effort, all five made their mark on the game.

You Make Everything Groovy: Anderson Varejao was everywhere again tonight, and his energy was contagious toward the Cavalier cause. Wild Thing had seven offensive boards on his way to 7 points, 11 total rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals, and 2 blocks. Many of Andy's biggest plays came in the first half as he sat for a long stretch in the second half along with Z in favor of Joe Smith and Darnell Jackson, but his night could be summarized by one play. With the Cavaliers up 7 with just under a minute to go, Troy Murphy pulled down a rebound and Andy stayed in on the play just long enough to flick the ball away from Murphy and the Cavaliers retained possession.

West coast-to-coast: Delonte West has been playing much better recently after a bit of a slump. What Delonte has changed is that he is attacking the basket more instead of relying on his 3-point shot, which has fallen off slightly since his scorching 40+% clip in the first half of the season. West has been a lockdown defender all season, and he got into the passing lanes tonight for 3 steals. He also dished out 4 assists as he has been taking more and more reps at point with Mo playing on the wing. Delonte's output is huge, because if he scores with the Big 3 (LBJ, Mo, Z), the Cavaliers are that much more difficult to beat.

Tight Rotation: In the first half, the starters' minutes were heavy as Mike Brown showed no signs of taking a passive approach to capturing the number one overall seed. In the second half, however, Brown went nine deep instead of virtually seven in the first (starting five plus Joe Smith and Wally Szczerbiak).  Darnell Jackson and Daniel Gibson got significant run in the third and fourth. D-block had 6 points and 3 boards in his 13 minutes while Boobie hit two clutch threes for his 6 points in 13 minutes. Four of the five starters (not Ilgauskas) logged 35+ minutes tonight, but you better believe that won't be the case Wednesday night. Expect little to no game action for James, Williams, and Ilgauskas with decreased playing time for Varejao, West, and Szczerbiak.

goes to: Delonte West, Anderson Varejao, and LeBron James. Any of the starting five could have brought home the award tonight, but these three had the most significant moments toward the Cavalier victory. All of LeBron's 18 second half points were needed as he finished with 37 points, 5 boards, and 5 dimes. Delonte logged the most minutes on the team (42) and amassed 20 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 1 block. Andy's hustle can't be measured on the stat sheet, but you can get an idea of it from his 7 points, 11 boards, 2 assists, 4 steals, and 2 blocks.

Team Grade: B+

The Cavaliers didn't need to be great tonight, and they were not. Instead, they were good and relied on sharing the basketball and getting enough stops to pull out the win. Cleveland outrebounded Indiana 51-41 and won the offensive rebound battle 16-12 as well. The wine and gold also converted 29-of-34 free throws to go with 19 assists, 10 steals, and 7 blocks.

Bring on Detroit: With the Pistons loss tonight at the hands of the Chicago Bulls, the Cavaliers finally know who they will be squaring off with in the first round of the playoffs. The Cavaliers will take on the Detroit Pistons in the 1-8 matchup in the Eastern Conference Playoffs in a series that will start this weekend. With the exception of the fifth-seeded Heat, the Pistons are probably the lower-seeded team that no one wants to play. Why you ask? Perhaps it is the 7 straight Eastern Conference Finals they have been to or the fact that the core of Rasheed Wallace, Rip Hamilton, and Tayshaun Prince have seen more than their fair share of postseason games and meaningful games against the Cavaliers. The Cavaliers won 3 of 4 from the Pistons this season with the lone blemish the result of an ice-cold shooting second half at The Palace in their first matchup this season. The one positive is that the Cavaliers have made the Pistons look foolish at times this season, and the one guy the Cavaliers have a hard time defending, Allen Iverson, will not be able to play due to injury. If the Cavaliers take them lightly though, they could be in trouble.

The Cavaliers close out the regular season Wednesday night at the Q on Fan Appreciation Night against the Philadelphia 76ers. They will go for the NBA record of 40-1 at home, a franchise record 67 wins, and look to close the regular season on a 6-game win streak.

Get PuMped!

Kirk

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