BOSTON — The Celtics were on the edge of endless criticism as they were left for dead at the end of regulation. The young, inexperienced Pacers — coming off a Game 7 win two days earlier — just needed to execute their way to the win as they led by three points with about 10 seconds left in the game.
But Jaylen Brown forced the turnover on Aaron Nembhard’s inbounds pass, giving the C’s one last gasp to tie the game. Then Brown took it into his own hands, hitting a wild, off-balance 3-pointer over Pascal Siakam to tie the game. After one last defensive stand, the C’s forced overtime courtesy of that Brown 3-pointer. Then they pulled away for the win to stun the Pacers in Game 1 of the East Finals to take the 1-0 series lead.
“Before the inbound I was talking to myself, ‘If I get this shot, it’s going in,’” Brown said. “I was telling myself the whole time, you get it, it’s going up and it’s going in. I happened to create some space on the backside and was able to make a big-time play. So we’ve got to be able to channel our emotions, move onto the next, and get ready to Game 2.”
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Brown finished with 26 points, seven rebounds and five assists in the stunning victory. The C’s built up a few double-digit leads throughout the game, but the dangerous Pacers just kept finding ways to make it a close game late. Then down the stretch of the fourth quarter, the Pacers were unexpectedly the ones to control the game late.
But the Celtics put together a furious rally late. Even when the Pacers led in overtime, Jayson Tatum stepped up as he poured in 36 points and 12 rebounds, shaking off some of his clutch-time struggles late. Jrue Holiday was also excellent, providing his impressive defense while also putting up 28 points, seven rebounds and eight assists.
The Celtics escaped with the win, preserving their home-court advantage. Now, they’ll regroup for Game 2, set for 8 p.m. Thursday at TD Garden.
“Welcome to the NBA playoffs,” Brown said. “You’ve just got to manage your emotions of the game. Anything can happen. The game is not over until the final whistle, the final buzzer sounds. That was a good example of that. … It’s not over until it’s over, and we found a way to win this game at the very end.”
