Game ID: 42300302
Indiana Pacers @ Boston Celtics
Thursday, May 23, 2024 at 8:00 PM ET
TD Garden, Boston, MA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
BOS 25 32 36 33 126IND 27 24 29 30 110
BOS vs IND ScoutingBOS vs IND Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
BOS availability going into 5/11 · 1 day's restOUT Porziņģis missed 3 since 5/01, out tonight
BACK Kornet back 4/27 after 2, 12 min since (82% of 15)
BACK Tillman back 5/01 after 4, 8 min since (69% of 12)
BACK Queta back 5/07 after 5, 4 min since (36% of 11)
BACK Brissett back 4/27 after 2, 4 min since (35% of 10)
BOS availability going into 5/13 · 1 day's restOUT Porziņģis missed 4 since 5/01, out tonight
BACK Tillman back 5/01 after 4, 8 min since (69% of 12)
BACK Queta back 5/07 after 5, 4 min since (36% of 11)
BOS availability going into 5/15 · 1 day's restOUT Porziņģis missed 5 since 5/01, out tonight
OUT Tillman missed 2 since 5/11, out tonight
OUT Queta missed 2 since 5/11, out tonight
BOS availability going into 5/21 · 5 days' restOUT Porziņģis missed 6 since 5/01, out tonight
OUT Tillman missed 3 since 5/11, out tonight
OUT Queta missed 3 since 5/11, out tonight
OUT Brissett missed 2 since 5/13, out tonight
BOS availability going into 5/23 · 1 day's restOUT Porziņģis missed 7 since 5/01, out tonight
OUT Tillman missed 4 since 5/11, returns tonight: 3 min (26% of 12)
OUT Queta missed 4 since 5/11, out tonight
OUT Brissett missed 3 since 5/13, returns tonight: 12 min (116% of 10)
NEW Tatum 37 to 42 min over the last 5
NEW Holiday 34 to 41 min over the last 5
NEW Horford 28 to 34 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 5/25 · 1 day's restOUT Porziņģis missed 8 since 5/01, out tonight
OUT Queta missed 5 since 5/11, out tonight
BACK Tillman back 5/23 after 4, 3 min since (26% of 12)
BACK Brissett back 5/23 after 3, 12 min since (116% of 10)
NEW Tatum 37 to 43 min over the last 5
NEW Brown 34 to 39 min over the last 5
NEW Holiday 34 to 41 min over the last 5
NEW Horford 28 to 33 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 5/27 · 1 day's restOUT Porziņģis missed 9 since 5/01, out tonight
OUT Queta missed 6 since 5/11, out tonight
BACK Tillman back 5/23 after 4, 8 min since (66% of 12)
BACK Brissett back 5/23 after 3, 10 min since (100% of 10)
NEW Tatum 37 to 44 min over the last 5
NEW Holiday 34 to 41 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 6/06 · 9 days' restOUT Porziņģis missed 10 since 5/01, returns tonight: 21 min (71% of 29)
OUT Kornet missed 2 since 5/25, returns tonight: 3 min (22% of 15)
OUT Queta missed 7 since 5/11, out tonight
BACK Tillman back 5/23 after 4, 8 min since (68% of 12)
BACK Brissett back 5/23 after 3, 10 min since (100% of 10)
NEW Tatum 37 to 44 min over the last 5
NEW Brown 34 to 41 min over the last 5
NEW Holiday 34 to 40 min over the last 5
NEW White 33 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Horford 28 to 35 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 6/09 · 2 days' restOUT Queta missed 8 since 5/11, out tonight
BACK Porziņģis back 6/06 after 10, 21 min since (71% of 29)
BACK Kornet back 6/06 after 2, 3 min since (22% of 15)
BACK Tillman back 5/23 after 4, 8 min since (68% of 12)
BACK Brissett back 5/23 after 3, 8 min since (75% of 10)
NEW Tatum 37 to 44 min over the last 5
NEW Brown 34 to 40 min over the last 5
NEW Holiday 34 to 39 min over the last 5
NEW White 33 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Horford 28 to 34 min over the last 5
IND availability going into 5/14 · 1 day's restBACK Smith back 5/12 after 6, 10 min since (65% of 16)
IND availability going into 5/17 · 2 days' restBACK Smith back 5/12 after 6, 7 min since (46% of 16)
IND availability going into 5/19 · 1 day's restBACK Smith back 5/12 after 6, 6 min since (38% of 16)
IND availability going into 5/21 · 1 day's restBACK Smith back 5/12 after 6, 6 min since (38% of 16)
NEW Sheppard 16 to 21 min over the last 5
IND availability going into 5/23 · 1 day's restBACK Smith back 5/12 after 6, 5 min since (30% of 16)
NEW Sheppard 16 to 21 min over the last 5
IND availability going into 5/25 · 1 day's restNEW Nembhard 26 to 32 min over the last 5
NEW Sheppard 16 to 22 min over the last 5
IND availability going into 5/27 · 1 day's restNEW Turner 28 to 33 min over the last 5
NEW Nembhard 26 to 34 min over the last 5
NEW Sheppard 16 to 22 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 108, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 21 free throws a game; Tatum at 30 and Brown at 22 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Porziņģis (7 straight). One day's rest. Indiana comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 111, shooting 55 percent and 43 from three, 14 free throws a game; Siakam at 21 and Haliburton at 20 a game. One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the arc, Indiana at 43 percent from three to Boston's 35 and the line, where Boston takes 21 free throws a game to Indiana's 14. Call it Boston 116, Indiana 113, Indiana keeping it close.
5/11 @ CLE 106-93 — BOS notes
BOS won 106-93. BOS shot 51% (41 of 80) to CLE's 43%, 13 of 34 from three. Tatum led with 33 (11 of 25, 2 of 8 from three, 9 of 9 at the line); Brown added 28, Holiday 18. The hinge was Q2, 27-20: a lead of 2 became 9, and the lead reached 23. Brown was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
5/13 @ CLE 109-102 — BOS notes
BOS won 109-102. BOS shot 49% (38 of 78) to CLE's 44%, 12 of 32 from three, and went to the line 24 times to CLE's 7 — 21 points from the stripe to their 5. BOS turned it over 14 times to CLE's 7, and CLE turned those into 8 steals. The glass went 48-32 for them. Tatum led with 33 (11 of 25, 2 of 8 from three, 9 of 9 at the line); Brown added 27, Holiday 16. The hinge was Q1, 37-30: from level to 7 ahead, and the lead reached 15. Horford was the night's best plus/minus at +11.
5/15 vs CLE 113-98 — BOS notes
BOS won 113-98. BOS shot 52% (42 of 80) to CLE's 48%, 19 of 43 from three. The glass went 43-28 for them. Tatum led with 25 (9 of 16, 3 of 7 from three); Horford added 22, White 18. The hinge was Q4, 28-20: a lead of 7 became 15. Horford was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
5/21 vs IND 133-128 — BOS notes
BOS won 133-128 in 1 overtime. BOS shot 47% (47 of 99) to IND's 54%, 15 of 45 from three, and went to the line 30 times to IND's 10 — 24 points from the stripe to their 9. BOS turned it over 14 times to IND's 21. Tatum led with 36 (12 of 26, 2 of 8 from three, 10 of 12 at the line); Holiday added 28, Brown 26. The hinge was OT1, 16-11: from level to 5 ahead. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
5/23 vs IND 126-110 — BOS notes
BOS won 126-110. BOS shot 53% (47 of 88) to IND's 52%, 15 of 37 from three. BOS turned it over 10 times to IND's 16. Brown led with 40 (14 of 27, 4 of 10 from three, 8 of 11 at the line); Tatum added 23, White 23. The hinge was Q2, 32-24: BOS came in trailing by 2 and left it ahead by 6, and the lead reached 20. Brown was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
5/25 @ IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Indiana comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 118, shooting 54 percent and 41 from three, 15 free throws a game; Siakam at 24 and Haliburton at 18 a game. One day's rest. Boston comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 106, shooting 51 percent and 39 from three, 20 free throws a game; Tatum at 30 and Brown at 26 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Porziņģis (8 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-8 a night and Indiana minus-2 and the defense, Boston allowing 106 a night to Indiana's 118. Call it Boston 117, Indiana 114, Indiana keeping it close.
5/27 @ IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Indiana comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 117, shooting 55 percent and 38 from three, 14 free throws a game; Siakam at 24 and Haliburton at 19 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has won the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest. Boston comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 110, shooting 50 percent and 38 from three, 22 free throws a game; Tatum at 31 and Brown at 26 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Porziņģis (9 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the line, where Boston takes 22 free throws a game to Indiana's 14 and the defense, Boston allowing 110 a night to Indiana's 117. Call it Boston 117, Indiana 116, Indiana keeping it close.
6/06 vs DAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 110, shooting 49 percent and 37 from three, 20 free throws a game; Tatum at 29 and Brown at 26 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Porziņģis (10 straight). 9 days' rest. Dallas comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 106, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 23 free throws a game; Dončić at 32 and Irving at 27 a game. Without Hardaway Jr. (3 straight). 6 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, in a game with no one edge to lean on. Call it Boston 115, Dallas 111, Dallas keeping it close.
6/09 vs DAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 108, shooting 48 percent and 36 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brown at 28 and Tatum at 27 a game. That is 5 straight wins. 2 days' rest. Dallas comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 106, shooting 48 percent and 39 from three, 23 free throws a game; Dončić at 32 and Irving at 23 a game. 2 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, in a game with no one edge to lean on. Call it Boston 115, Dallas 109.
5/14 @ NYK 91-121 — IND notes
IND lost 91-121. IND shot 43% (31 of 72) to NYK's 47%, 12 of 27 from three. IND turned it over 18 times to NYK's 9. The glass went 29-53 against them. Siakam led with 22 (7 of 15, 2 of 3 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); Turner added 16, Haliburton 13. Q1 was theirs, 32-38, but the other 3 periods went 83-59 against them. Toppin's -25 in 21 minutes was the worst on the floor.
5/17 vs NYK 116-103 — IND notes
IND won 116-103. IND shot 54% (49 of 91) to NYK's 44%, 9 of 26 from three, and got to the line 13 times to NYK's 26. The glass went 47-35 for them. Siakam led with 25 (11 of 21); Turner added 17, Nembhard 15. The hinge was Q2, 32-21: IND came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 10, and the lead reached 23. Nesmith was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
5/19 @ NYK 130-109 — IND notes
IND won 130-109. IND shot 67% (53 of 79) to NYK's 42%, 13 of 24 from three, and got to the line 16 times to NYK's 27. Haliburton led with 26 (10 of 17, 6 of 12 from three); Siakam added 20, Nembhard 20. The hinge was Q1, 39-27: from level to 12 ahead, and the lead reached 23. Haliburton was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
5/21 @ BOS 128-133 — IND notes
IND lost 128-133 in 1 overtime. IND shot 54% (53 of 99) to BOS's 47%, 13 of 35 from three, and got to the line just 10 times against 23 fouls committed. IND turned it over 21 times to BOS's 14, and BOS turned those into 11 steals. Haliburton led with 25 (8 of 18, 6 of 14 from three); Siakam added 24, Turner 23. Q2 was theirs, 33-30, the deficit cut from 3 to 0, but the other 4 periods went 103-95 against them.
5/23 @ BOS 110-126 — IND notes
IND lost 110-126. IND shot 52% (44 of 84) to BOS's 53%, 11 of 29 from three. IND turned it over 16 times to BOS's 10, and BOS turned those into 9 steals. Siakam led with 28 (13 of 17); Nembhard added 16, Toppin 11. Q1 was theirs, 27-25, but the other 3 periods went 101-83 against them. McConnell's -18 in 17 minutes was the worst on the floor.
5/25 vs BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Indiana comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 118, shooting 54 percent and 41 from three, 15 free throws a game; Siakam at 24 and Haliburton at 18 a game. One day's rest. Boston comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 106, shooting 51 percent and 39 from three, 20 free throws a game; Tatum at 30 and Brown at 26 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Porziņģis (8 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-8 a night and Indiana minus-2 and the defense, Boston allowing 106 a night to Indiana's 118. Call it Boston 117, Indiana 114, Indiana keeping it close.
5/27 vs BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Indiana comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 117, shooting 55 percent and 38 from three, 14 free throws a game; Siakam at 24 and Haliburton at 19 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has won the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest. Boston comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 110, shooting 50 percent and 38 from three, 22 free throws a game; Tatum at 31 and Brown at 26 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Porziņģis (9 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the line, where Boston takes 22 free throws a game to Indiana's 14 and the defense, Boston allowing 110 a night to Indiana's 117. Call it Boston 117, Indiana 116, Indiana keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
INDAN A. Nembhard
AN A. Nesmith
BS B. Sheppard
DM D. McDermott
IJ I. Jackson
JS J. Smith
JW J. Walker
KB K. Brown
MT M. Turner
OT O. Toppin
PS P. Siakam
TH T. Haliburton
TM T. McConnell
BOSAH A. Horford
DW D. White
JB J. Brown
JH J. Holiday
JT J. Tatum
LK L. Kornet
OB O. Brissett
PP P. Pritchard
SH S. Hauser
SM S. Mykhailiuk
IND/BOS the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Brown matches career playoff high with 40 points, Celtics beat Pacers to take 2-0 lead in East
BOSTON -- — Jaylen Brown was a big enough problem for the Indiana Pacers even before an All-NBA snub that may have given him an added desire to show how much he can do for the Boston Celtics .
“I think he cares about it in a way that motivates him, and I think he doesn’t really care about it at all,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said after watching Brown match his playoff career high of 40 points in Boston’s 126-110 victory over Indiana in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals Thursday night.
“He understands that winning is the most important thing,” Mazzulla said. “He just cares about the right stuff.”
Two nights after his game-saving 3-pointer and one day after he was left out of the voting for the league’s top 15 players, Brown scored 10 points during a 20-0 Boston run that turned a first-quarter deficit into a second-quarter lead that the Celtics never relinquished.
Asked if the All-NBA snub motivated him, Brown said, “I wouldn’t say that.” Asked to elaborate, he said colorfully: “We’re two games from the finals. I don’t got time to (care).”
Jayson Tatum and Derrick White scored 23 points apiece and Jrue Holiday had 15 points and 10 assists for the top-seeded Celtics, who lost Game 2 in both of their previous series this postseason.
Pascal Siakam scored 28 points for Indiana, which heads home for Games 3 and 4 on Saturday and Monday nights in an arena where they have won 11 straight games — including six in the playoffs — since March 18. Tyrese Haliburton , who had 25 points and 10 assists in the series opener, had 10 points and eight assists Thursday before leaving the game in the third.
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said Haliburton injured his left hamstring — the same injury that kept him out of 10 games in January.
“We need Ty, but ‘next man’ mentality," Siakam said. "We’ve got to play together. This team got where we’re at by playing together. ... It’s on us to continue.”
One game after the Celtics jumped to a 12-0 lead and Indiana spent the rest of the first half clawing its way back, the lead changed hands 10 times in the opening quarter, with the Pacers holding a 27-22 edge with 1:14 left.
Then Boston scored the next 20 points.
Indiana missed nine straight shots and committed four turnovers during the drought that lasted more than six minutes. Brown scored 10 on his own during the run and had 24 at the half; he opened the third quarter with two quick baskets to give the Celtics a 61-52 lead.
But Siakam also came out hot in the second half, hitting four baskets in the first four minutes – a pair of 2s and a pair of 3s – to make it a two-point game. Boston pulled away again – this time for good, scoring 16 of the next 21 points.
Indiana never got within single digits again.
Brown scored 26 points Tuesday night, when the Celtics won thanks to some unforced errors by the Pacers — especially Haliburton — down the stretch. On Wednesday, Brown was left off the All-NBA teams; last year’s selection to the second team qualified him for a five-year supermax extension that made him the highest-paid player in the NBA.
“I mean, he has it going,” Holiday said. “Y’all see what I see. Great player. Great leader. But wants to win. And takes thinks into his own hands. So I’m glad to have him on my side. I ride with him. The way JB’s been playing, man, it’s outstanding.”