The Celtics rained down 20 three-pointers and beat the Pacers with 51 points
The Indiana Pacers took on the Boston Celtics on Thursday morning, and it was going to be a tough one for the blue and gold. Boston is an excellent team, and the Pacers were without star guard Tyrese Haliburton due to an ankle injury.
Despite the tough circumstances, Indiana started off strong. They scored on each of their first three possessions, and an Obi Toppin steal led to a Bennedict Mathurin layup to give the Pacers a quick 6-4 lead. It was an impressive start.
Then, it all fell apart. In response to the Pacers lead, Boston showed their talent. Four different Celtics players scored in the next 81 seconds as they went on a 10-0 run, which prompted a Pacers timeout. A quick, exciting start by the blue and gold was quickly erased.
The Pacers turned to their bench early and brought in Aaron Nesmith and Buddy Hield in an attempt to steady the ship. Indiana’s depth was going to have to be a huge advantage against Boston’s top-heavy team.
After an initially-strong run from the bench, the Cetlics responded again. It was 26-20 at one point during the quarter, but Boston closed on an 18-7 run and led by 17 after 12 minutes.
The Pacers missed all seven of their three-point attempts in the first quarter, so they were down big despite shooting 13/18 from inside the arc. They needed to shoot better if they were going to come back.
That didn’t happen as the second quarter began. Boston kept rolling and Indiana kept missing. The Pacers defense looked helpless as the Celtics took a 20-point lead with 7:11 to go in the second quarter.
Indiana had few answers. They tried different lineups, including Ben Sheppard getting a rotation look for the first time of the season, but few of them were successful.
At halftime, the Celtics led 75-54. They were dominating the Pacers, and Andrew Nembhard was the only member of the blue and gold with double-digit points.
In the second half, the Celtics did not let their opponents go. In the third quarter, they still played a 34:17 offensive to expand the score to 109:71. In the fourth quarter, the substitute lineup went crazy. Sam Hauser scored 4 goals in a single quarter.
He scored 12 points from three-pointers, and Payton Pritchard and Dalano Banton each contributed 11 points. They scored 46:33 in a single quarter. In the end, the Celtics scored 155 points, the second-highest score in team history. points, beating the Pacers by 51 points to win.
According to “ESPN” data, the Celtics’ 155 points is the second-highest record in team history since scoring 173 points against the Lakers on February 27, 1959. The Celtics scored 508 in the first four games of this season. points, also setting the second-highest record in team history.
Tatum scored 30 points, 12 rebounds and 4 assists today, White had 18 points and 4 assists, Jaylen Brown had 16 points and 7 rebounds, and Hauser had 17 points and 5 three-pointers. For the Pacers, substitute T.J. McConnell led the team with 18 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists.