Jrue Holiday leads Celtics to victory over Pacers; 1 win in NBA Finals

NBA

By Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS — Jrue Holiday has been feeling unwell all day. He even missed the team's morning shootaround.

When it mattered most, however, the Celtics guard cut a fine figure.

Holiday made a three-point play with 38.9 seconds left to give Boston its first lead in nearly 36 minutes, followed it up with the game-winning steal and then two free throws to secure a 114-111 win in Indiana on Saturday night that gave the Celtics a convincing 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals.

The Celtics overcame an 18-point deficit in the second half and can secure their second NBA Finals appearance in three years with another win on Monday in Indiana.

“I'm fine, I had a fever and slept a lot. But I'm fine,” Holiday said. “I just made a play (at the end). He's a great player, made a great play. I just made a play.”

Holiday finished with 14 points, including five in the final 39 seconds, and nine rebounds on a night when he seemed to be off his game at times.

But afterwards he sounded like himself and felt well enough to balance his children on his lap.

While Holiday struggled to get going, Boston's other players got the job done.

Jayson Tatum scored a career-high 36 points in the playoffs, adding 10 rebounds and 8 assists.

Jaylen Brown contributed 24 points and 37-year-old Al Horford had 23 points and sank 7 of 12 three-point shots.

But it was Holiday's heroics in the final stages of the game that silenced Indiana's loud fans and gave Boston a perfect 5-0 road record in this season's playoffs.

“I'm glad we have him, Jrue is a damn tough fighter,” Tatum said. “Of course he won a championship. For him to come out here, put everything on the line for us and win the game with a great play, we have a damn good team.”

The Pacers already had a difficult road back in this series – even before they learned that All-NBA guard Tyrese Haliburton would not play in Game 3 because of a left thigh injury. It's also not clear if he will be available for Game 4.

Nevertheless, the Pacers did not let themselves be defeated.

Andrew Nembhard led the Pacers with a career-high 32 points before Holiday stole the ball from him with 3.3 seconds left. TJ McConnell finished with 23 points, nine rebounds and six assists, while Myles Turner and Pascal Siakam each scored 22 points.

Turner also had 10 rebounds.

Indiana had a chance to force overtime, but Aaron Nesmith's 3-pointer missed.

While the Pacers played well, scoring 69 points in the first half, twice taking an 18-point lead and still leading 107-99 against the NBA's top team with three minutes left, it was clear that the Pacers missed Haliburton on the court.

“Courageous. Our guys played a great game,” said coach Rick Carlisle. “We didn't quite keep up tonight, but we'll be back on Monday and we'll hit even harder.”

Still, a sold-out stadium, mostly wearing gold checkered jerseys with the Indiana state flag and including actors there to celebrate the Indianapolis 500 weekend, helped the Pacers re-energize, as they had in their first home playoff games, all of which they won.

But Holiday's masterstroke – a spectacular layup, the free throw to take the lead, the best defensive effort of the game and two free throws to win with 1.1 minutes left – silenced the crowd on a wild night.

Indiana built an 18-point lead midway through the second quarter and extended that lead again midway through the third quarter.

The second time, Boston took advantage of a series of Indiana turnovers to spark a 13-4 run that brought them within 90-81 after three minutes.

The Celtics then opened the fourth quarter with a 9-3 run that brought them within 93-90 at Horford's 3 with 8:29 left.

Indiana responded by extending its lead to 107-99 with 3:05 left, but then watched as Boston, fueled by Holiday, went on a 13-2 run.

“We've overcome every challenge,” Tatum said. “We're in a great position right now, just one win away from the finals. But we can't look beyond Monday or anything, and we have a special opportunity to get back to the finals.”