Pacers 102 - Celtics 91: Paul George, Pacers top C's

It didn't matter which lineup Celtics coach Brad Stevens put together to counter him -- Paul George kept the Pacers ahead and was the star of the night.

The Celtics (3-4) dropped their fourth loss of the season last night at TD Garden, 102-91. The Celtics were able to put together a run in the third quarter -- when they gained a lead but George and the Pacers took it right back and finished strong in the fourth.

George's 26 points led six Pacers in double figures. C.J. Miles (17 points, five rebounds) and Monta Ellis (13 points, six assists) also helped secure the Pacers' advantage in the fourth quarter.

Evan Turner, who was in the starting lineup for Avery Bradley, scored 20 for the Celtics and Isaiah Thomas had 14 points and four assists. Jared Sullinger notched a double-double (11 points, 11 rebounds).

"I just didn't think we had anything good going offensively after the eight-minute mark in the fourth quarter," Stevens said. "We started off the third quarter great and then Paul George made Paul George plays coming out of the timeout and we didn't respond to their runs at all."

The biggest lead of the night for the Celtics happened when they got off to a 9-2 run to start the third quarter and had a seven-point advantage. But the Pacers were right behind them. Indiana responded with a run (13-2) of their own and regained the lead. George's 17 second-half points gave the Pacers enough breathing room, while the Celtics scored a measly two points in the final four minutes.

After the Celtics offense struggled at the end of the third quarter, Stevens turned to his rookies for energy to start the fourth. Terry Rozier responded with a finger roll layup and R.J. Hunter sunk a deep three-pointer to cut the Pacers lead to two points. That turned out to be the closest the Celtics would get to regaining their third quarter lead.

After George drained in his final made field goal with 4:11 left in the game, the Celtics committed four turnovers and didn't come close to trimming an 11-point deficit.

The Celtics' next game will be this Friday night at TD Garden when they take on the Atlanta Hawks.


Game Notes: 

Celtics tried to catch up to the Pacers by launching three-pointers and it didn't go so well. The C's shot 16.7 percent on 4-of-24 from behind the arc.


Picture used in courtesy of Getty Images



Josue Pavon
Twitter: @Joe_Sway10
@CausewayStreet