Scalabrine: ‘Championship-level performance’ by C’s in Game 3 originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The Boston Celtics’ Game 3 win over the Indiana Pacers wasn’t their prettiest, but it was perhaps their most impressive postseason performance yet.
After taking an early nine-point lead, the C’s trailed by 18 in the second quarter while being pounded in the paint by Indiana. The Pacers were virtually unstoppable inside the arc during the first two frames, shooting 69.4 percent on two-pointers en route to a 69-point first half.
The Celtics woke up defensively in the second half, limiting Indiana to 18 of 47 (38.3 percent) shooting. They erased their deficit and regained their lead late in the fourth quarter. Jrue Holiday’s clutch steal with seconds left sealed their 114-111 victory.
The exciting comeback brings Boston within one win of a place in the NBA Finals. While it took the C’s all 48 minutes to finish off an undermanned Pacers team, Eddie House came away satisfied with their resilient effort.
“At the end of the day, the Boston Celtics are in a battle tonight and everyone’s going to say, ‘Well, who were they playing? ‘They didn’t have (Tyrese) Halliburton there,'” the 2008 NBA champion said. Celtics Postgame Live. “They’re going to make any excuse for the fact that we haven’t been in a fight, right? Because everyone’s talking about, ‘Well, the West has been tested.’ …
“This was a tough game and we persevered. We found our resilience and showed up. And that’s why we got Jrue Holiday. Let’s talk about it!”
Fellow analyst Brian Scalabrine joined House to talk about how the Celtics handled their business after falling behind by double digits.
“I would say this is a courageous victory,” he said. “There’s a lot of times when you think they’re down and out. They give up a 3, they give up an and-one, they give up this, but they just kept going. … Pacers played good basketball today. This weren’t two teams limping to the finish. Celtics kept answering the call. At one point you were like, ‘Man, are they coming back in this game? Chip away, chip away… 15 to 4 to finish the game to close and they win this game.
“This was a championship-level performance from start to finish. I only saw two or three breaks, and those things happen in the game. I like the way they responded to the adversity today to take a 3-0 lead in Indiana to stand. .”
Holiday’s heroics prevented the C’s from spoiling the stellar performances of Jayson Tatum and Al Horford. Tatum finished with 36 points (12-23 FG, 5-10 3-PT), 10 rebounds, eight assists, two blocks and one steal. The 37-year-old Horford had 23 points on 7-for-12 shooting from 3-point range, making him the oldest player to make seven threes in a playoff game.
Boston will try to punch its ticket to the finals Monday night in Indiana. Tip-off is set for 8:00 PM ET. and coverage begins at 7 p.m Celtics Pregame Live on NBC Sports Boston.
