Cavs edge Pacers to keep rounding into playoff form

CLEVELAND — It was a playoff atmosphere at Quicken Loans Arena on Friday. There were playoff possessions with the Cavs answering the Pacers, and the Pacers answering the Cavs.

LeBron James, who missed the morning shootaround with a cold and was a game-time decision, scored at a feverish pace, accounting for 13 of his game-high 29 points in the fourth quarter. At one point, he scored 11 consecutive Cavs points and had 13 of 15 during a long stretch of the fourth.

But it wasn't a one-man effort for Cleveland either: All five starters scored in double-figures, including a double-double from forward Kevin Love, and Matthew Dellavedova, a ball of kinetic energy on the floor, scored 11 crucial points off the bench.

J.R. Smith's two free throws with one second left secured the 95-92 victory for Cleveland, and C.J. Miles' desperation three-pointer fell short.

And though Indiana has work to do just to get into the playoffs, who wouldn't want Pacers vs. Cavs in the first round in the Eastern Conference? No lead in the final quarter was greater than five points, and it mostly was a one possession game for the final eight minutes.

Though James' team has eliminated the Pacers in three consecutive postseasons, including twice in the Eastern Conference finals, Indiana coach Frank Vogel knows how to make it tough on James. Of course, James knows how to make it tough on opponents, whether it's converting impressive finger-rolls off the glass or faking an underhand pass — getting the defender to bite — and then making a three-pointer, as he did against Indiana.

"Now, LeBron does a lot of great things, and we all know that," Cavs coach David Blatt said. "One of those things is he comes to play."

James tried to keep the focus on his season-long objective — making sure the Cavaliers improve — and not the Pacers as a potential first-round opponent.

"I think in the sense of we got better tonight," James said. "That's why it meant more for us. We have to continue to get better. That's a very, very good team over there. We're just trying to get as good as we can going down the stretch."

The Cavaliers demonstrated they could win a plodding, physical, grind-it-out game.

Cleveland is trending in the right direction. Since they acquired Timofey Mozgov, J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert in early January, the Cavaliers are 26-9 and have the third-highest winning percentage in the league, behind the Golden State Warriors and Atlanta Hawks and ahead of the San Antonio Spurs, Memphis Grizzlies, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, New Orleans Pelicans and Los Angeles Clippers.

Since Jan. 14, the Cavs have had the highest winning percentage in the league, and Cleveland's starting five is putting up fantastic numbers, scoring 119.8 points per 100 possessions and allowing 94.7 points per 100 possessions for a net rating of 25.2. No starting five in the league is posting better numbers in that stretch, according to nba.com statistics.

And don't think the Cavs aren't aware of those statistics.

And don't think the game wasn't important. The Pacers need wins if they want to get into the playoffs, and the Cavaliers, who are in second place in the East, are trying to keep their distance between Chicago, Toronto and Washington.

It turned out to be an interesting night in the East. Miami won, and not only did the Heat strengthen their position as the seventh seed, they gained a game on the Milwaukee Bucks, who lost and now have just a 1½-game lead over Miami for the No. 6 seed in the East.

Chicago beat Toronto and moved into third place in the East, and Washington is in the middle of a difficult West Coast trip, but no doubt the Wizards, who not long ago were close to dropping to the sixth seed, are thinking about a top-four seed.

There are still plenty of games to be played, but the Cavaliers are playing solid basketball and headed for the second seed, and right now, they're first-round opponent would be the surging Heat.

And speaking of appealing first-round match-ups, James and the Cavs vs. his old team, the Heat — and his good friend Dwyane Wade — is at the top of the list.

Follow Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt.

GALLERY: NBA PHOTO OF THE DAY