- The #1 Cleveland Cavaliers will face the #4 Indiana Pacers in the second round of the 2025 NBA playoffs
- Indiana was the only team to beat Cleveland three times in the regular season (3-1 SU)
- See the opening Cavaliers vs Pacers series odds plus the Game 1 spread, moneyline, and total
The #4 Indiana Pacers (50-32, 29-11 home, 20-20 away) have booked their ticket to the second round of the NBA playoff bracket and will now face the #1 Cleveland Cavaliers (64-18, 34-7 home, 30-11 away) in a best-of-seven for the right to advance to the 2025 Eastern Conference Final. Though Indiana had success against Cleveland in the regular season – more on that later – the Cavaliers vs Pacers series odds heavily favor Cleveland advancing, and without much fuss.
CLE Cavaliers vs IND Pacers Series Odds
The Cavs have opened as -460 favorites to win the best-of-seven series and are -168 favorites to do so by multiple games. The O/U on total games has been set at 5.5 with the -128.
Odds as of April 29 at FanDuel. See SBD’s list of the top online casinos.
Indiana was one of just six teams to beat Cleveland on its home court this season, along with Atlanta, Houston, Boston, Orlando, and Sacramento. The Pacers were the only team to do it twice, and were also the only team to beat Cleveland three times overall.
But take that with a grain of salt. The teams split a pair of home-and-home games on Jan. 12 and 14, with each winning on the other’s court. Then the Pacers won a pair of late-season games in which the Cavs were missing/resting a boatload of starters and rotation players.
CLE vs IND Regular-Season Results
So, in the table above, only the January games actually featured the anything resembling the rosters that will meet in the playoffs.
Indiana’s five-game first-round series win over the #5 Milwaukee Bucks featured three over and two unders. The Pacers covered the spread in their first three wins but needed a miraculous OT comeback to seal a one-point victory in the series-clinching Game 5 on Tuesday night (119-118).
Cleveland absolutely embarrassed the #8 Miami Heat during a four-game first-round sweep. They won every game by at least nine points and by an average of 30.5 PPG. That included a 37-point win in Game 3 and a laughable 55-point win in Game 4, both on Miami’s home court. Three of the four games hit the over.
Pacers vs Cavs Game 1 Odds
The NBA odds already list the Game 1 spread, total, and moneyline, and they heavily favor Cleveland to take the early lead in the best-of-seven series. The Cavaliers have opened as 7.5-point favorites to win Game 1, which (according to FanDuel) will take place at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland on Saturday, May 3.
On the moneyline, Cleveland is -310 to take a 1-0 series lead, while the Pacers are +250 road underdogs. The game total is sitting at .5 with -110 odds each way.
Cleveland Cavaliers vs Indiana Pacers Series Schedule
*If necessary.
The NBA playoffs are in full swing, and one of the most intriguing matchups in the first round is between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Indiana Pacers. The Cavaliers, led by LeBron James, are looking to make another deep playoff run, while the Pacers, led by Victor Oladipo, are hoping to pull off an upset.
The series odds currently favor the Cavaliers, with most sportsbooks giving them around a 70% chance of winning the series. However, the Pacers have been playing well all season and should not be underestimated. This has the potential to be a very competitive series.
The schedule for the series is as follows:
Game 1: Sunday, April 15 at 3:30 PM ET in Cleveland
Game 2: Wednesday, April 18 at 7:00 PM ET in Cleveland
Game 3: Friday, April 20 at 7:00 PM ET in Indiana
Game 4: Sunday, April 22 at 8:30 PM ET in Indiana
Game 5 (if necessary): Wednesday, April 25 in Cleveland
Game 6 (if necessary): Friday, April 27 in Indiana
Game 7 (if necessary): Sunday, April 29 in Cleveland
As for the betting lines for Game 1, the Cavaliers are currently favored by around 6.5 points. The over/under for total points scored is set at around 212.5. This means that if you bet on the Cavaliers to win, they would need to win by at least 7 points for you to win your bet. If you bet on the Pacers to cover the spread, they would need to either win the game outright or lose by less than 7 points for you to win your bet.
In terms of the over/under, if you think the game will be high-scoring, you would bet the over. If you think it will be a defensive battle with fewer points scored, you would bet the under.
Overall, this series promises to be an exciting one with two talented teams going head-to-head. Whether you’re a fan of the Cavaliers, Pacers, or just a basketball enthusiast, this is definitely a series worth keeping an eye on. And if you’re feeling lucky, placing a bet on Game 1 could add an extra level of excitement to the matchup.
