Jrue Holiday’s late heroics steer Celtics to thrilling 114-111 Game 3 triumph over Pacers

For many of the evening, Jrue Vacation was comparatively quiet.

Vacation, who was questionable with an sickness earlier within the day, determined to robust it out however was clearly not his typical spry self.

Then within the last minute, Vacation dug deep and shifted the trajectory of not solely the sport, but in addition the sequence. Vacation delivered a large go-ahead and-one with 38.2 seconds left, secured an enormous steal with 3.1 seconds remaining and hit two clutch free throws with 1.1 left.

“I’m glad we received him,” Jayson Tatum to ESPN sideline reporter Lisa Salters. “Jrue’s a hell of a competitor.”

The Celtics outlasted the Pacers, 114-111, in a back-and-forth Sport 3 that featured loads of drama and intrigue. Indiana gave Boston all the things it may deal with Saturday evening, however the Celtics earned their largest win of the season in spectacular style.

Tatum fueled the Celtics with 36 factors, 10 rebounds, 8 assists and 0 turnovers. Jaylen Brown added 24, and Al Horford contributed 23 on seven 3-pointers.

Andrew Nembhard poured in 32 for the Pacers in Tyrese Haliburton’s absence, T.J. McConnell scored 23 off the bench and Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner chipped in 22 apiece, however it wasn’t fairly sufficient.

Boston handed Indiana its first residence lack of the playoffs and moved to 5-0 on the highway.

The Celtics jumped out to a 16-9 lead three minutes in, fueled by scorching taking pictures from Tatum and Horford. Boston began 6 for six earlier than a miss, and Derrick White set the tone defensively by acrobatically swatting a Turner shot.

Indiana methodically chipped away, making a acutely aware effort to push the ball and assault the basket. Siakam spearheaded a 16-8 surge to finish the quarter, because the Pacers sliced the Celtics’ result in 32-31 via 1.

Tatum completed the quarter with 15, Siakam had 11 and Indiana racked up a whopping 26 factors within the paint. It was no coincidence, both, as Indiana systematically attacked a smaller Celtics workforce with conviction and objective.

At first, it appeared as if the Celtics had the components for withstanding the Pacers’ inevitable spike in vitality. Then within the second quarter, all the things went awry for Boston, as Indiana dropped 38 factors to construct a 69-57 halftime benefit that felt like extra.

Nembhard and McConnell have been the first catalysts. Each did the overwhelming majority of their harm inside and within the midrange, breaking down a number of the Celtics’ finest defenders off the dribble with relative ease.

The Celtics could win a championship, however they performed removed from championship-caliber protection within the second quarter.

The Pacers relied on their frenetic fashion and dictated the tempo the majority of the quarter. They completed the half taking pictures 63.6 % from the sphere and 10 of 10 from the road, totaling 20 assists whereas hitting simply three 3-pointers.

Boston shot 55.6 % from 3 and turned it over solely thrice, however it didn’t matter a lot, as Indiana received primarily no matter it wished. The Celtics did, nevertheless, use an 8-0 flurry late within the half to remain inside putting distance regardless of a Nembhard 3 within the last seconds.

After a comparatively even begin to the second half, the Celtics ratcheted up the defensive depth and made the Pacers work for all the things — a stage of firepower that was sorely lacking within the second quarter returned at a crucial time.

Xavier Tillman – the one Celtic with a constructive plus-minus via three quarters – offered a carry defensively, and Horford and Jrue Vacation additionally chipped in on that finish. The Pacers couldn’t purchase a 3, however Nembhard continued to sizzle to protect the lead.

A Doug McDermott tip-in prolonged Indiana’s result in 90-81 via three.

Momentum shifted Boston’s totally Boston’s approach early within the fourth, as Vacation and White attacked the offensive glass and Tatum maneuvered his approach into the lane. Horford’s sixth 3-pointer trimmed the margin to 93-90 with 8:29 remaining.

“You’ve received to consider,” Tatum stated. “We all the time consider we’ve received an opportunity to win the sport.”

After a vicious throwdown from Brown and a well timed 3 from Tatum, the Celtics trailed simply 109-106 with 1:41 remaining. Tatum then hit Horford on a slick behind-the-back go and Horford buried his seventh 3-pointer to chop it to 2.

Vacation muscled his technique to the rim and completed, plus the foul, to place Boston forward, 112-111, with 38.9 remaining.

Nembhard received a good look on the following possession – a midrange shot he had buried all evening – however he hit the again rim and Horford secured a rebound.

“He was massive time for us,” Tatum stated of Horford.

Then Vacation, who was additionally good in Sport 1, picked Nembhard’s pocket and offered the ending touches.