Tyrese Haliburton said the Pacers need to focus on closing out games after they blew a late lead to the Celtics in Game 1.
The Indiana Pacers blew a late lead to lose Game 1 to the Boston Celtics.
Tyrese Haliburton said the Pacers played great for 47 minutes but didn’t “sustain” it 48.
Pacers showed great resilience in Game 1, but may regret not closing out Game 1 in Boston.
The Indiana Pacers needed one more minute of great play to steal a Game 1 win over the Boston Celtics.
Unfortunately, they came up just short.
The Pacers lost Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals in heartbreaking fashion, blowing a late lead in the final minute to allow the Celtics to force overtime. Indiana had their chances in overtime, but couldn’t keep up with the Celtics offense, as they fell, 133-128.
After the game, Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton said the Pacers know they can hang with the Celtics and just need to focus on closing out after playing 47 “great” minutes in Game 1.
“Today we played great for about 47 minutes and just didn’t sustain it for 48,” – Tyrese Haliburton
Haliburton said the Pacers had been “trash” in Game 1s in their first-round series against the Milwaukee Bucks and second-round series against the New York Knicks, calling Tuesday’s game an improvement.
Wild Finish Between Pacers & Celtics in Game 1
Pacers and Celtics both had crucial turnovers in key moments late
Unfortunately, Haliburton had a heavy hand in the Pacers’ meltdown. Haliburton dribbled the ball out of bounds with 27 seconds to play in regulation and the Pacers leading by three. Though that play didn’t lead directly to a Celtics basket, it did cost the Pacers the opportunity to run the clock down and perhaps get fouled by the Celtics.
After Jaylen Brown hit a wild, game-tying three-pointer in the corner with six seconds to play, the Pacers still had a chance to win the game. However, Haliburton turned down several looks from deep while evading Celtics defenders and only got off a tough, well-contested shot as he fell out of bounds as time expired. Haliburton said he should have gotten a better final shot and that it had already replayed in his head over and over.
Haliburton also had a costly turnover in overtime, as he lost control of the ball while being guarded by Jrue Holiday with 1:02 remaining and the Celtics up one. Jayson Tatum responded on the other end with a three-pointer that put the Celtics up four and for good.
“I had two bad turnovers that I feel like cost us the game … I gotta be better and I will be better in Game 2,” Haliburton said.
Haliburton rued the unforced turnovers, calling them “frustrating, to say the least.”
Haliburton also rejected the premise that the Pacers should feel “encouraged” by hanging with the Celtics. Haliburton said the Pacers know they can play with Boston, and that the team has ignored critics who have questioned whether Indiana would be in the conference finals if their previous two opponents hadn’t been dealing with major injuries.
Indiana did show great fight in Game 1. They looked to be up against the ropes in the opening minutes, when the Celtics stormed out to a 12-0 lead. Indiana responded and ended the quarter down only three. The Celtics also made a run in the third quarter to go up by 13, only for the Pacers to fight back within one point by the end of the quarter.
The Pacers have plenty to feel good about, including a 30-10 free throw disparity in favor of the Celtics.
Of course, Boston didn’t play a full 48 minutes, either. Whether Indiana comes to regret not closing out Game 1 will be a major storyline in the series going forward.
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