The Boston Celtics are the first team in the NBA Playoffs to advance to the second round following their four-game sweep over the fifth seed Indiana Pacers.
It was a hard fought battle from both sides, with the Celtics only beating Indiana by four points to secure the 110-106 victory.
Both teams came out firing in the first quarter, and it was clear Indiana was not ready to go down without a fight. The Pacers were able to outscore the Celtics 23-21 and kept that two-point lead going into the half.
The Pacers had hope coming out of halftime, with the massive Myles Turner poster on Gordon Hayward lifting the fans’ and players’ spirits, but it would not last long as the Celtics would battle their way back into the game.
Myles Turner with a BODY
(via @Pacers) pic.twitter.com/wea4Irzhuq
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 21, 2019
Boston would outscore Indiana 26-23 in the third quarter, and close out the game with a 37-34 fourth quarter. The Celtics bench would be the leading producers for the Celtics, with Hayward leading the team with 20 points shooting 7-9 from the field and 3-3 from behind the arc.
Marcus Morris and Terry Rozier combined for 30 points, as the bench scored 50 of the 110 Celtics points. It was an unusual game for star players Kyrie Irving and Al Horford, shooting a combined 8-32 from the field and tallying 28 points. But each player came up big when needed, including this unreal defensive steal and pass from Irving resulting in a Jayson Tatum dunk, (and Jaylen Brown breaking out the broom from the bench)
ARE YOU KIDDING, KYRIE?! pic.twitter.com/6juhfZYM6X
— Taylor Snow (@taylorcsnow) April 21, 2019
The Celtics are the first and only team to have advanced to the second round and are expecting to face MVP-candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks who are 3-0 up on the Detroit Pistons.
