INDIANAPOLIS — The Celtics are officially onto the NBA Finals — and they did it by dominating the rest of the Eastern Conference. While the pesky Pacers continued to put up a strong fight, the Celtics completed the sweep with a 105-102 win Monday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Derrick White hit the East Finals-clinching 3-pointer late as the C’s are headed back to the Finals.
Not only are the C’s in the Finals for the second time in three seasons, but they made it look easy aside from two hiccups. Sure, injuries for other teams were a factor. But the best team in the NBA cruised through the East playoffs as they’re now just four wins away from hanging Banner No. 18. They went 12-2 to get out of the East playoffs.
The Celtics stars once again led the way Monday. Jayson Tatum was again masterful, putting up 26 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists. Jaylen Brown was huge with 29 points after shaking off a slow start. White had 16 points while Jrue Holiday had 17 points and nine rebounds. The Celtics will face the winner of the West Finals, which the Mavericks lead the Timberwolves in a 3-0 series lead.
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There was also an interesting wrinkle in Game 4: The Larry Bird East Finals MVP award. Both Tatum and Brown had huge games in the series, so Monday’s game could’ve been the tiebreaker. Tatum started hot while Brown was cold, but Brown kept the C’s afloat as part of a tough third quarter. The East Finals MVP ended up going to Brown for the first time in his career after a steady closeout Game 4.
The Celtics, much like Game 3, had a fast start as they buried their share of 3-pointers. But the Pacers — despite facing a huge series deficit — continued to fight as their potent offense quickly made it a game. Andrew Nembhard, who had 24 points for the Pacers, has had a huge East Finals as he’s broken out and was a consistent problem for the Celtics.
By halftime, the Celtics held a slim one-point lead. They had a sluggish third quarter, putting up just 22 points, as the Pacers just refused to go down without a fight. There was some frustration with the officiating from the Celtics’ end, too, as they looked to close out the series.
The Pacers kept the pressure on the Celtics in the fourth quarter with their lead peaking at nine points. But the C’s — after playing only one clutch game before this series — found themselves in another close game. Once again, they found the execution late as White knocked in the go-ahead 3-pointer. For good measure, Holiday had the game-sealing rebound as the C’s ran out the clock.
