The Indiana Pacers beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 114-105 in Game 5 to win the series 4-1.
Tyrese Haliburton finished with 31 points in the win, with Pascal Siakam adding 21 points.
“I have to give our guys credit; they earned this,” Rick Carlisle said after the win. “This was one of the best teams in the league. I’m sorry their season had to end like this. They had the perfect season, and we came along and were hot at the right time.”
The Cavs got out to a 44-25 lead before the Pacers closed it to 56-52 at halftime.Â
The Pacers have now made two consecutive conference finals. They are the first team since seeding began to make the conference finals in consecutive seasons as the four-seed or lower.
The Pacers also won all three road games in the series.
“We were not favored in one game. The lowest point spread was 5½. That was something that fueled our guys too,” added Carlisle.
The Pacers will play the winner of the Knicks-Celtics series.Â
