The Boston Celtics needed overtime to beat the Indiana Pacers in game one of the Eastern Final of the 2024 National Basketball Association postseason on Tuesday. There is no doubt that the Pacers surprised many by staying with the Celtics, who were 9.5 point favourites. Indiana actually had the lead for a significant time in the fourth quarter. However, down the stretch it was the Celtics who showed strong resiliency. With six seconds left in the fourth quarter, Celtics shooting guard Jaylen Brown of Marietta, Georgia tied thew game at 117 to force overtime with a magical and difficult three-point shot from long range. Then in the extra five minutes, Boston outscored Indiana 16-11 to win the game 133-128.
This was a typical Pacers game this season. They had no problems scoring. Their problem was defending. In the regular season, the Pacers led the NBA with 123.3 points per game. However, they also gave up the fourth most points in the NBA at 120.2 points per game. The only teams that gave up more points than Indiana were the Washington Wizards (123), the Utah Jazz (120.5) and the Atlanta Hawks (120.5).
Offensively, all five Celtics starters reached double digits in scoring. Small forward Jayson Tatum of St. Louis, Missouri had a double-double (36 points and 12 rebounds). Meanwhile point guard Jrue Holliday of Los Angeles, California had 28 points, Brown, a shooting guard, had 26 points, while center Al Horford of Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, and guard Derrick White of Parker, Colorado had 15 points each. Game two is back in Boston on Thursday night.
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