The Boston Celtics defeated the Indiana Pacers 133-128 in an overtime thriller to open the Eastern Conference finals on Tuesday night in Boston.
With the Celtics trailing 117-114 in the closing seconds of regulation, guard Jaylen Brown hit a dramatic 3-pointer from the corner with 5.7 seconds left to force the overtime session.
St. Louisan Jayson Tatum scored 10 of his game-high 36 points in overtime. He scored on a three-point play to give the Celtics a 124-123 lead, then followed up with a big 3-pointer with a 127-123 lead late in the overtime period.
Tatum also added 12 rebounds and four assists to his 36 points. Jrue Holiday had 28 points, seven rebounds and eight assists while Brown added 26 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Al Horford and Derrick White scored 15 points each for Boston.
The Pacers had five players in double figures as well, led by Tyrese Haliburton’s 25 points. Pascal Siakam had 24 points and 12 rebounds while Myles Turner had 23 points and 10 rebounds. Aaron Nesmith scored 14 points and TJ McConnell came off the bench to score 13 points.
The series resumes on Thursday night with Game 2 in Boston at 7 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN.
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