At the Buzzer: R3G4 — Celtics 105, Pacers 102
At the Buzzer: R3G4 — Celtics 105, Pacers 102
For the third time in four games, the Pacers had the lead late and they failed to finish. They were outscored by the Celtics 7-0 over the final three minutes in a 105-102 loss to end their season.
The Pacers faced their third must-win game of the postseason Monday night as Memorial Day Weekend came to a close. And they’d have to do without Tyrese Haliburton, who was not expected to play and then officially ruled out a few hours before tip-off.
This team has shown fight all season so there’s no reason to think that wouldn’t be the case again in Game 4. And they had the support of the home crowd behind them.
The game officials were Zach Zarba, James Capers, Pat Fraher, Justin Van Duyne (alternate).
Haliburton missed his second straight game with left hamstring soreness. Jalen Smith, who has been out of the rotation, was added to the injury report in the afternoon with an illness. And then he was later ruled out.
The Celtics were without Kristaps Porzingis (right calf strain).
The Celtics were favored by 7.5 points, same as game 3.
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🏀How it happened: The Celtics struck first and took their largest lead of the game just minutes in, 14-6. The first quarter in this series was tight throughout; the teams were separated by three points or less in all four games. The Pacers went to four reserves plus Aaron Nesmith midway through and T.J. McConnell accounted for six of the Pacers’ first 17 points. Both teams handled the ball and the pressure of a close-out game well to start.
After trailing by two entering the second quarter, the Pacers took the lead after Andrew Nembhard made consecutive 3-pointers. After missing their first three, the Pacers made five of their next eight from range. Nembhard tallied 12 of his team-high 24 points in the quarter — and he showed so much growth in his second year. After McConnell sank a high floater to end the first quarter, Nembhard drilled a foul-line jumper before halftime as the Celtics led by one.
Myles Turner got hit in his back early in the game and it bothered him throughout, but he sank consecutive triples to open the second half. The first one was a beautiful pick-and-pop with Nembhard. But then Turner lost his cool; he was issued two offensive fouls and a technical within 20 seconds. It was a turnover-filled quarter for both teams, but Jaylen Brown ended it with a layup and then 3-pointer.
Brown then made an outside shot to even the score at the start of the fourth quarter, but it was correctly ruled a shot-clock violation after a review during the first timeout. Despite his success in the short-range, the Celtics left McConnell and he scored on three straight possessions. A few minutes later, though, he had a hard fall. Nesmith replaced him in the lineup, then scored on the Pacers’ next two possessions to go ahead 98-90 with 5:56 left.
From there, the Pacers were outscored 13-4 — including 7-0 over the final 3:33. Similar to Game 3, they finished the game with four missed shots and two turnovers. They elected not to foul (down three) on the final possession, but failed to get the rebound after a miss by Jayson Tatum so Jrue Holiday was able to run out the clock.
They had wins within their grasp in Games 1, 2 and 4, but failed to close. And that’s how this conference finals will be remembered for the Pacers. With that said, they exceeded expectations by competing and getting this far.
🏀What it means: The Celtics swept the Pacers, just as they did in 2019. And they have reached the NBA Finals for the second time in three seasons. The Pacers were competitive in three of the four games — leading in the final five minutes — but they failed to close.