Nate Taylor

nate.taylor@indystar.com

Game 4: Cavaliers at Pacers, 1 p.m. Sunday, ABC

INDIANAPOLIS — Coach Nate McMillan entered the locker room for halftime of the Indiana Pacers’ pivotal Game 3 Thursday against the Cleveland Cavaliers with what he thought was a simple task. The Pacers possessed such a large lead, McMillan just wanted to remind his players to keep their intensity and focus the same for the second half.

McMillan told the Pacers that the Cavaliers still had the pedigree of a defending champion. McMillan said the Pacers should expect the Cavaliers to make a run or two. He even suggested that LeBron James, Cleveland’s best player, wouldn’t quit despite the Pacers' 25-point lead.

Twenty-four minutes later, the Pacers were losers — their large lead erased, their home crowd quieted by James, their season only one more loss away from ending.

“We didn’t execute what I talked about at halftime,” McMillan said Friday to explain how the Pacers’ greatest and most devastating postseason collapse in franchise history.

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McMillan continued: “We needed to be the aggressors. You can’t come out and get back on you heels in that situation.”

In the midst of the Pacers’ meltdown, though, McMillan didn’t mention one detail that couldn’t be ignored: He was just as culpable in the loss as any of his players.

McMillan, as his players struggled to keep their lead, couldn’t find a lineup that was competent enough to play well on either end of the court. He, to the displeasure of the fan base, called only one timeout in the third quarter as the Cavaliers scored 35 points to make the game tense.

During this series, McMillan has stressed to his players to remain calm and keep their composure no matter how the game’s momentum changes. McMillan, however, recorded a technical foul in the third quarter when he felt the referees didn’t call a shooting foul on the Cavaliers after Paul George missed a jumper.

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Even before the game ended, a chorus of fans and critics questioned every move – or the lack of correct moves – that McMillan made in the fourth quarter. The screaming came from hundreds of Twitter timelines, some bursting with bewilderment and others fueled by outrage.

Across Twitter, fan blogs and local sports radio Friday, McMillan received the harshest and loudest criticism since became the coach in May. The questions from those upset with McMillan were valid:

Why didn't McMillan play Jeff Teague more in the second half?

How can Thaddeus Young play just 19 minutes in the second half of the biggest game of the season?

Why did Monta Ellis, who has struggled throughout the series, play six minutes in the fourth quarter with Lance Stephenson?

What happened to the Pacers’ ball movement in the second half after it led to 74 points in the first half?

And for the love of all things holy, why can’t McMillan get George better shots that don’t involve him being doubled by the Cavaliers?

McMillan, a former player, acknowledged he questioned some his decisions and judgement after Thursday’s game.

“I always go through that,” McMillan said.

The Pacers’ offense in the second half crumbled. They shot just 25.5 percent from the field. The Cavaliers, meanwhile, produced their rally with a flurry of 3-pointers and thunderous dunks from James.

Across from McMillan on the court was Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue, who made a move in the second half that he felt was necessary for the Cavaliers to win the game. Lue didn’t play Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, both All-Stars, in the fourth quarter. Instead, Channing Frye and Kyle Korver made several 3-pointers.

McMillan didn’t make such a bold move. He instead relied on his bench to play solid defense. The Pacers, by all statistical measures, failed. In a game where James finished with 41 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists, McMillan was asked Friday if he felt hopeless in creating a good strategy in the second half.

“They were a calm team,” McMillan said of the Cavaliers. “The one thing that I showed was how calm they were even when we went up by 26 points. You didn’t see panic in that team. They got stops, they executed offensively and that’s the same thing that we needed to do.”

The mode after the Pacers’ practice was somber.

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“It’s weighing on me,” George said. “It’s going to weigh on me tomorrow, probably up until Sunday where the focus is on what’s ahead in the game.”

George did support McMillan when asked if the Pacers need to make more adjustments ahead of Game 4 on Sunday.

“We’ve got to play smarter,” George said. “We’ve got the lineups. We’ve got to play smarter.”

Myles Turner did his best to repeat McMillan’s message to the team when he was asked of the team’s motivation for Sunday’s game.

“He said it’s not over,” Turner said of McMillan’s speech to the team Friday. “We still have another opportunity to make it a series. If there’s any pride, we’ll go out and play well.”

McMillan, along with his team, will be tested again Sunday – about their toughness, their composure and their trust with one another.

“I’ve been told, you know, three things in life,” McMillan said. “You have a choice. You can give in, you give up or you can give all you’ve got. I expect us to give all we have on Sunday. How tough is it? We have to win.”

Many Pacers fans wished McMillan had done enough to help the Pacers win Thursday.

Call IndyStar reporter Nate Taylor at (317) 444-6484. Follow him on Twitter: @ByNateTaylor.

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Game 4: Cavaliers at Pacers, 1 p.m. Sunday, ABC