Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers missed an opportunity to widen their lead in the conference semifinals, falling 126-104 to the Cleveland Cavaliers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. With the series now at 2-1 in favor of the Pacers, head coach Rick Carlisle issued a pointed message to his team ahead of Game 4.
During Game 3, Rick Carlisle was assessed a technical foul after repeatedly voicing his frustrations with the officiating. The incident appeared to impact the Pacers emotionally, as they struggled to stay competitive against the Cavaliers and never managed to close the gap on the scoreboard.
However, Carlisle made it clear that the loss was not due to officiating. Instead, he sent a strong message to his team, urging them to adjust their mindset ahead of Game 4.
“This (loss) is not on the officials. Alright? Zero to do with the officials. This is us not playing with enough presence, posture, disposition, whatever you wanna call it,” Carlisle stated during the post-game press conference. “We’ve got to fix it, and we’ve got 48 hours to do it”.
Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Cleveland Cavaliers takes a shot over Ben Sheppard #26 of the Indiana Pacers during game three of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. (Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
Carlisle reflects on Game 3 loss
Carlisle emphasized that the Pacers came out flat and failed to match the level of urgency required for a playoff game. He also highlighted the rebounding disparity as a major contributor to the loss.
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“We’ve got to simply fight harder at the beginning of the game. We did not do that. I mean, you get down 11-nothing, you’re not there. You’re not there the way you need to be,” Carlisle stated. “We got killed on the boards. I mean, 56 to 37 on the boards, 18 to four in the offensive boards”.
Carlisle on Evan Mobley’s impact
The Cavaliers benefited from the return of three key players in Game 3: Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and De’Andre Hunter. Among them, Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley stood out, finishing the game with 18 points and 13 rebounds.
“He’s a Defensive Player of the Year, and he’s an All-Star,” Carlisle said of Mobley’s performance. “So, it’s like bringing Hakeem Olajuwon back to the Houston Rockets… He’s a great player, so he’s gonna help his team be considerably better”.
