INDIANAPOLIS -- With the Detroit Pistons and the Chicago Bulls still battling Indiana for the last two spots in the Eastern Conference playoffs, the Pacers knew they had to take advantage of the Cleveland Cavaliers' decision to rest LeBron James on Wednesday night.

And take advantage they did, getting 29 points from Paul George while shooting 56.3 percent, including 16-for-31 from 3-point range, in a relatively easy 123-109 victory against the likely No. 1 seed in the East.

"(With James out), Cleveland played small, so we attacked the basket," said George, who shot 10-for-17 from the field, including 4-for-9 from 3-point range. "We had great ball movement, guys were looking for their shot and guys were making their shots."

Indiana assisted on 25 of its 45 field goals, with nine Pacers handing out at least helper, led by eight from Monta Ellis.

C.J. Miles added 21 points for Indiana, which remains in the No. 7 slot in the Eastern Conference playoff chase.

The Pacers (42-36) are one-half game ahead of the Pistons (42-37), who defeated the Orlando Magic 108-104 Wednesday night. The Bulls (39-39) sit 2 1/2 games behind Detroit.

Solomon Hill and Ian Mahinmi each added 15 for the Pacers, and Ellis scored 13 points in Indiana's third consecutive victory.

"We all were making shots, and they had to pick their poison," said Solomon Hill, who added five rebounds and three steals to go with his season-high point total. "Defensively, we made them try to drive to the basket."

Kyrie Irving scored 26 for Cleveland, which had a four-game winning streak snapped. The Cavaliers (56-23) got 23 points from Kevin Love.

A George three-point play followed by a George 3-pointer gave Indiana a 116-98 advantage with 5:08 remaining.

"We always have to continue scoring with pace and executing our offense," Indiana coach Frank Vogel said. "We have to keep playing with desperation. It didn't matter what the Cavs were doing. We have to worry about us and keep taking care of our business."

Miles made two quick fourth-quarter 3-pointers, and Rodney Stuckey added one to give the Pacers a 109-90 lead with 8:11 to play. At that point, Indiana was 14-for-26 from beyond the arc.

Indiana used an 8-0 run, including two 3-pointers from George, to take a 96-78 lead with 2:29 remaining in the third period. The Pacers led 96-82 after 36 minutes.

Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue offered perspective regarding the 14-point loss to a team the Cavaliers previously beat three times this season.

"Am I worried about the way we played?" Lue said. "No. We have the best player in the world (James) on our team. The positive on this is that I thought we played great offensively. We got good shots. We moved the ball well. We ran some good stuff. Defensively, we just didn't take the challenge tonight."

Love, who tweaked his back with an awkward landing in the third quarter, said he got some heat on it before returning to action for several minutes in the fourth quarter.

"By the time I got back in the game, it already was decided, so I came back out," Love said. "I will be fine. With the Pacers, it was one of those nights when everything was falling for them. For a while there, this looked like a Western Conference game."

A George 3-pointer and two free throws from Mahinmi pushed the Pacers' third-quarter lead to 88-74, but Irving countered with consecutive baskets to pull the Cavaliers to within 88-78.

The Pacers scored a season-best 70 first-half points -- they scored 66 against the Brooklyn Nets and against the Denver Nuggets -- on their way to a nine-point lead through 24 minutes.

With the game tied at 41, Indiana scored 14 consecutive points, including two Hill 3-pointers, a Miles 3-pointer and a Stuckey three-point play.

George scored 14 first-half points for the Pacers, and Ellis and Solomon Hill each added 11. Indiana shot 61.9 percent during the opening half, including 7-for-13 from 3-point range.

Love had 21 first-half points for Cleveland, and Irving added 15 points and five assists. Cleveland shot 52.6 percent from the field before halftime.

For the game, the Pacers hit 56.3 percent of their field-goal attempts while holding the Cavaliers to 47.3 percent shooting.

NOTES: The Cavaliers defeated the Bucks 109-80 Tuesday in Milwaukee, and the decision was made to rest F LeBron James against Indiana. Iman Shumpert (5.8 points per game) started in place of James and scored four points. ... Indiana G Ty Lawson (upper respiratory infection) did not play. ... Cleveland ranks third in opponents' points per game (97.8), fifth in opponents' rebounds per game (40.9) and seventh in 3-point field goal percentage (38.1). ... Indiana ranks second in opponents' 3-point field goal percentage (33.2) and fourth in steals per game (9.1). ... Cleveland was looking to sweep the regular-season series against the Pacers for the first time since 2007-2008. The Cavaliers won the first three meetings by a collective 13 points. ... Cleveland had lost 10 in a row in Bankers Life Fieldhouse until winning 111-106 in overtime on Feb. 1.