Pacers oust Cavs, Nuggets on brink

LOS ANGELES  – The Indiana Pacers came from behind to send the Cleveland Cavaliers crashing out of the NBA playoffs on Tuesday as the Oklahoma City Thunder overcame a dazzling Nikola Jokic display to push the Denver Nuggets to the brink of elimination.

Cleveland, the top seeds in the Eastern Conference, saw their postseason come to an abrupt halt after Tyrese Haliburton scored 31 points to power the Pacers to a 114-105 victory, sealing a 4-1 series triumph.

Western Conference top seeds Oklahoma City grabbed a 112-105 victory over Denver to edge into a 3-2 lead in their titanic duel with the 2023 champions.

Three-time NBA Most Valuable Player Jokic delivered a towering performance for Denver, the Serbian star finishing with 44 points, 15 rebounds and five assists.

But Jokic’s heroics were in vain as the Thunder – who had trailed for most of the game – unleashed a fourth-quarter bombardment to outscore Denver 34-19 and seal a pulsating win.

Jokic’s rival for this season’s MVP award, OKC’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, scored 31 points.