Indiana Pacers vs Cleveland Cavaliers Prediction, 5/6/2025 Preview and Pick

Game: Indiana Pacers vs Cleveland Cavaliers

Date: Tuesday, May 6, 2025

Location: Rocket Arena in Cleveland, OH

TV: TNT

Odds/Point Spread: Indiana (+11.0)

With a 1 - 0 series lead, the Indiana Pacers (50-32) are traveling to Rocket Arena on Tuesday where they will try to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers (64-18) in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Indiana opens this matchup as 11-point dogs. The over/under is 230.

The Pacers faced off with the Cavaliers and walked away with a win by a score of 121-112 in Game 1 of the Semifinals. In the matter of personal fouls, the Pacers finished with 20 while the Cavaliers finished the game with 16 personal fouls. They also made 9 out of their 38 attempts from 3-point range. Cleveland went 72.2% from the free throw line by knocking down 13 of their 18 tries. Furthermore, Cleveland pulled down 43 rebounds (13 offensive, 30 defensive) and added 9 blocked shots. Cleveland earned 25 dimes and had 8 steals in this contest. Concerning defending, Indiana allowed the other team to shoot 45.9% from the floor on 45 out of 98 shooting. They also doled out 30 assists for the matchup as well as forcing 8 turnovers and getting 6 steals. With regard to pulling down rebounds, they earned 43 with 7 of them being offensive. From the free throw line, the Pacers made 14 of 15 attempts for a percentage of 93.3%. Indiana wrapped up the game having earned a 53.0% FG percentage (44 of 83) and made 19 of their 36 3-pointers.

Andrew Nembhard is one player who was a major factor in the matchup. He was able to score 23 points on 7 out of 10 shooting. He played for 37 minutes played but finished the game without grabbing a rebound. Nembhard finished the contest at 70.0% from the field and dished out 6 assists.

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Indiana heads into this game with a win-loss record of 50-32 this year. They currently have an average of 117.4 points per contest (7th in the league) while shooting 48.8% from the field. The Pacers are shooting 36.8% on shots from downtown (1,081 of 2,934) and 78.9% from the charity stripe. As a team, Indiana is pulling in 41.8 boards per contest and is sitting with 2,398 dimes for the season, which ranks 3rd in the league in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession via turnover 13.2 times per contest and as a team they commit 18.7 fouls every game.

On the defensive end, the Pacers are forcing 15.0 turnovers per contest while drawing 18.8 fouls. They are ranked 12th in the league in allowing assists to the opposition with 2,131 surrendered so far this year. The Pacers defense is allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 47.4% (3,493 of 7,372) and they surrender 45.0 rebounds per contest as a unit. They concede 35.5% on 3-point shots and they rank 17th in basketball in PPG allowed (115.1).

In Game 1, when discussing cleaning the glass, Cleveland permitted Indiana to pull down 43 in all (7 on the offensive glass). They shot 52.8% from three-point range by shooting 19 out of 36 and ended up shooting 14 out of 15 at the free throw line (93.3%). The Cavaliers allowed the Pacers to bury 44 of 83 attempts from the floor which left them with a rate of 53.0% for the game. When the game finished, the Cavaliers ended up shooting 45 out of 98 from the floor which had them shooting 45.9%. In the matter of shooting from beyond the arc, Cleveland made 9 out of their 38 attempts (23.7%). They were able to bury 13 of them for a clip of 72.2%. The Pacers committed 20 personal fouls in the game which took the Cavaliers to the charity stripe for 18 shots. They coughed up the ball 8 times, while earning 8 steals for the matchup. The Cavaliers snagged 30 defensive rebounds and 13 offensive boards totaling 43 in this contest.

Donovan Mitchell ended up being a factor for the Cavaliers in this game. Mitchell earned 33 points in his 34 mins on the court and had 4 assists for the game. He converted 13 out of 30 for this contest giving him a rate of 43.3%, and accounted for 5 rebounds.

Cleveland has a win-loss mark of 64-18 for the year. In terms of offensive execution, the Cavaliers are hitting on 49.1% from the field, which ranks 2nd in the league. Cleveland has accounted for 9,999 points on the campaign (121.9 per contest) and they pull in 45.4 boards per contest. They are dishing out assists 28.1 times per contest (9th in basketball) and they lose possession via turnover 13.2 times per contest. The Cavaliers have committed 18.1 fouls per game and they go 77.6% from the free throw line.

The Cleveland defense gives up 35.9% on three-point shots (1,104 of 3,075) and opponents are knocking down 77.9% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have given up 25.6 dimes and 43.5 rebounds per contest, which is 8th and 11th in the league. The Cavaliers on the defensive side of the court are 12th in basketball in PPG surrendered with 112.4. They are forcing 14.5 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 45.4% from the field (3rd in the league).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Indiana (+11.0)

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