NBA: Celtics reach NBA finals for second time in three seasons
The Celtics were a fantastic team to watch in the playoffs this season. They had only lost two games in the playoffs and were one win away from the finals but Derrick White’s tiebreaking 3-pointer with 43 seconds left gave Boston the lead, and the Celtics pulled out a four-game sweep of the Indiana Pacers, 105-102 on Monday night. The Celtics embarked on another journey to the NBA Finals once again after making their mark in 2022 where they were defeated by the Golden State Warriors.
The Celtics will now face either Dallas or Minnesota in Game 4, which is scheduled on Tuesday. The Mavericks are in a lead with 3-0 in the best-of-7 finals.
White finished with 16 points. Jaylen Brown led Boston with 29 points, and Jayson Tatum added 26 points, 13 rebounds, and eight assists to help the team overcome 9-point deficit in the second half.
Indiana, without two-time All-Star Tyrese Haliburton, lost its second straight home game despite leading both times in the final minutes. Andrew Nembhard scored 24 points, 10 assists, and six rebounds, but he missed a game-tying 3-pointer in the waning seconds, and the Pacers never got another chance.
Pascal Siakam contributed 19 points and 10 rebounds for Indiana, while TJ McConnell scored 15 and Aaron Nesmith scored 14.
Despite keeping a lead or remaining tied in the last minutes, Indiana lost three times, and it happened again on Monday when Boston rallied late.
“They fought hard for us, and they take pride in being a team that does not want to lose,” Tatum said, relieved. “We were only thinking about the rabbits all night. “It was a huge shot.”
The following are the player stats and box scores for Game 4 between the Boston Celtics and the Indiana Pacers:
Boston Celtics Player Stats & Box Score
Indiana Pacers Player Statistics and Box Scores:
The Celtics will shortly meet the winner of the Western Conference Final between the Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves in the NBA 2024 final.
