After a disappointing loss on Sunday evening, the Cleveland Cavaliers put together an impressive bounce-back win on Monday with a 135-119 victory over the Indians Pacers.

It wasn’t just that the Cavaliers won; it was how they won, and there was a lot to like about what we saw from the Wine and Gold in Indiana.

After Sunday’s loss, the Cavaliers came out firing and got off to a strong first half against the Pacers. Cleveland scored 66 points in the first half, tied for the third-highest scoring first half of the season.

A great sign was that the four Cavaliers (Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, De’Andre Hunter, and Jaylon Tyson) all scored in double digits through the first 24 minutes of the game; it was a true team effort right from the get-go. 

It wasn’t just that the Cavaliers were scoring; it was how they were scoring two. Sixteen of Cleveland’s 66 first-half points came on second-chance attempts. That’s a number that Kenny Atkinson is sure to love.

Jaylon Tyson made some interesting comments on Sunday about how it feels like other teams are playing with more hunger than the Cavaliers. That’s a bold comment for a sophomore to make about his team filled with veteran, but Tyson backed those comments up.

The second year forward scored 27 points while shooting 76 percent (10-for-13) from the floor and 80 percent (4-for-5) from behind the arc. Tyson also grabbed 11 rebounds (ties career-high) and dished out four assists.

Overall, this was easily Tyson’s best game of his NBA career. 

Cleveland’s head coach cited rebounding as one of the key reasons the Cavaliers lost to the Celtics, and it’s been a key issue for the Wine and Gold all season, too. It’s no coincidence that Cleveland beat the Pacers and also won the rebound battle.

In the end, Cleveland grabbed 12 more boards than the Pacers (48-36). This number includes 19 offensive rebounds, totaling 28 second-chance points. 

That’s aggressive, gritty, assertive Cavaliers basketball at its best, and it must continue for Cleveland to string together a few wins. 

Donovan Mitchell continues to show why he’s one of the best players in the NBA, putting up another dominant performance against the Pacers. Spida finished with 40 points, nine rebounds, and six assists in what was just an all-around superstar caliber game.

This is now Mitchell's third 40-point game of the season and his second in the last three games. This 40-point performance is his 22nd as a member of the Cavaliers, which is the second most in franchise history, only trailing LeBron James.