Sunday’s remaining buzzer closed the door on the Boston Celtics’ fourth loss in six video games — a feat that they have been capable of keep away from all of final season. Their second outing in three days in opposition to the Indiana Pacers had a a lot totally different really feel than their first.
Boston gave up seven fewer factors by three quarters (98) than they did within the entirety of Friday’s dominant win (105). There was no carryover in vitality after the Cs seemingly discovered what they’d been missing of their Christmas Day letdown in opposition to the Philadelphia 76ers.
Based on head coach Joe Mazzulla, there have been different elements in play throughout the wire-to-wire victory in Sport 1 of this back-to-back.
“I feel the distinction was final sport, clearly, they have been down (Andrew) Nembhard they usually have been on the second evening of a back-to-back,” he informed reporters. “And so tonight, I feel they’d, like, extra factors in transition within the first half than they did in the whole sport (Friday). And you realize, whenever you’re not taking part in effectively defensively, that’s on everyone. It’s on the employees, it’s on the coaches, it’s on the gamers. So we’ve simply bought to proceed to work on it.”
Whereas these elements are very actual, it’s clear that Mazzulla was annoyed along with his workforce’s output on protection in Sport 2. He’s proper, — Boston was crushed down the ground time after time in a sport the place stops have been already coming few and much between. Indiana outscored the hosts 66-48 within the paint and 18-4 in fastbreak factors, together with this huge slam from Thomas Bryant.
Not solely did the Pacers capitalize on simple appears to be like within the paint and in transition, however they used these appears to be like to diffuse any momentum that Boston was capable of put collectively. Whenever you’re attempting to dig your approach out of a gap the way in which that the Cs have been in, these types of simple buckets make it practically not possible to take action.
Mazzulla’s workforce spent the primary half of the fourth quarter chipping away at a seven-point Pacers lead. They’d some ups and downs, however ultimately managed to chop it to simply two factors with 7:38 to play.
In what felt just like the blink of a watch, the Pacers ripped off a 9-0 run to all however ice the sport, they usually did it by doing what they’d performed all evening — paint penetration and transition.
“I imply, clearly there’s a whole lot of stuff that we gotta, gotta do higher, we gotta enhance on, and we’re gonna watch the movie, and we gotta be taught,” mentioned Derrick White after Boston’s sixth residence lack of the yr.
Bettering from errors has been a key a part of the Celtics’ mindset for the previous yr and a half. Usually, it’s fairly uncommon for guys to must go to the rostrum and echo the identical “now we have to higher” message over and over. It’s sadly been a standard theme this month with the workforce dropping six of their final 13 video games.
To ensure that the Cs to work their approach again into the circulate of issues, they’re going to must refind “aggressive pleasure.”
“I imply, it’s simply good to know like it is a sport that we bought to have enjoyable with,” White added. “Clearly, we wish to play at a excessive stage, however when now we have that pleasure, that aggressive pleasure that we speak about (that’s once we’re at our greatest). Simply having enjoyable taking part in the sport sharing the ball, and making the precise learn. Some instances are robust, it’s sort of such as you’re working uphill. However, we’ve simply gotta get again to simply having that pleasure.”
Boston could have an opportunity to finish 2024 with a win once they host the Toronto Raptors on New Yr’s Eve. Maybe, they’ll end with some aggressive pleasure.
