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Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« on: April 20, 2019, 11:34:57 PM »

Online FLCeltsFan

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Boston Celtics (3-0) at Indiana Pacers (0-3)
Sunday, April 21, 2019
1:00 PM ET
Post Season Game #4, Road Game #2
Round 1  Game #4
TV: ABC
Radio: WROR 105.7, 1070 The Fan
Bankers Life Fieldhouse




Probable Starters
 
PG:  Kyrie Irving  ...............................................SG:  Jaylen Brown

C:  Aron Baynes
   
SF:  Jayson Tatum ............................................... PF:  Al Horford

Celtics Reserves
Semi Ojeleye
Daniel Theis
Brad Wanamaker
Guerschon Yabusele
Gordon Hayward
Robert Williams III
Marcus Morris
Jonathan Gibson
Terry Rozier

Injuries
Marcus Smart (oblique)  out 

Two Way Players
PJ Dozier
RJ Hunter

Head Coach
Brad Stevens




Probable Starters
   
PG:  Darren Collison .................................................. SG:  Wesley Matthews
 
C:  Myles Turner
   
SF:  Bojan Bogdanovic  .............................................. PF: Thaddeus Young

Pacers Reserves
Tyreke Evans
Aaron Holiday
Alize Johnson
Cory Joseph
TJ Leaf
Doug McDermott
Kyle O'Quinn
Domantas Sabonis

Injuries
Victor Olidipo (knee)  out

Two Way Players
Edmund Sumner
Davon Reed

Head Coach

Nate McMillan

Game Notes

There have been 132 teams that have gone down 0-3 in a best of 7 series in the NBA.  Of those 132 none have ever overcome the 0-3 start to win the series so the Pacers have a huge task ahead of them.  Even if they don't win the series, however, their pride is going to demand that at least they don't get swept. 

The Pacers will especially want to avoid their second first round sweep in three years.  They were swept in 2017 by the Cavaliers before taking the Cavs to 7 games last season.  The Celtics haven't swept a series since they swept the New York Knicks in 2011. 

The Celtics and Pacers have swept each other one time each in NBA history.  The Pacers swept the Celtics 3-0 back in 1992.  The Celtics swept the Pacers 4-0 in 2004.  Both of these were first round series.  A sweep in this series would give the Celtics a day or two extra to rest before having to take on the winner of the Bucks-Pistons series, which the Bucks lead 3-0 and will likely sweep. 

The Pacers have been in each of the three games so far and have led in the second half but third and fourth quarter scoring droughts have doomed them in all three games.  The Celtics closed Game 3 with their starting lineup from opening night with Kyrie Irving, Jaylen Brown Gordon Hayward, Jayson Tatum and Al Horford.  They are finally playing like we expected them to all season.  There is still room for improvement, however, and hopefully they will take another step up in this game. 

Marcus Smart remains out for the Celtics with a torn oblique.  Victor Oladipo remains out for the Pacers with a knee injury.  Smart has been on the bench for the Celtics, cheering on his teammates and being a defensive coach on the bench.  Victor Oladipo was supposed to join his team for Friday's game but was unable to due to poor weather delaying his flight.  If he is able to make it to this game,  it may give the Pacers a much needed boost.  Kyrie Irving was sniffling at his post game press conference after Game 3.  Hopefully that won't develop into something worse. 

Keys Matchups
vs
Jayson Tatum vs Bojan Bogdanovic   
This remains the key matchup for both teams.  The Celtics need Jayson Tatum to be aggressive and to play well.  On the other hand,  they must continue to limit Bogdanovic's impact on the game.  He is averaging 16.7 points, 5.0 rebounds 2.7 assists and 2.7 steals.  He is shooting 38.8% from the field and 31.6% from beyond the arc.  He is by far the Pacers best scorer and always a threat to hit 3 pointers in the clutch.  However, so far the Celtics have been holding him well below his season averages. 

vs
Al Horford vs Thaddeus Young
The only other Pacers starter who is in double figures in the playoffs is Young.  He is averaging 11 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 3.7 steals.  He is shooting 42.2% from the field, but just 16.7% from beyond the arc.  Both averages down quite a bit from the regular season also.  Horford is key for the Celtics because he does so much on both ends.  The Celtics are 29.8 points per 100 possessions better with Al Horford on the floor through the first three playoff games and is absolutely vital to the Celtics' success. 

Honorable Mention
Celtics Bench vs Pacers Bench
The Pacers have gotten some good production from their bench and when the starters sit, the Celtics reserves need to come in and make a difference as well.  The Celtics reserves are contributing 27.3 points and 18 rebounds per game while the Pacers reserves are putting up 34.8 points and 18.7 rebounds per game.  The Celtics second unit has to match the production from the Pacers bench and keep the Celtics playing well when the starters get some rest. 


Keys to the Game

Take Care of the Ball - The Celtics have been turning the ball over 15.7 times per game in these playoffs, which has led to 17.7 points off those turnovers for the Pacers.  The Celtics were 3rd in the regular season with just 12.8 turnovers per game.  They simply must take better care of the ball.  They need to continue to make the extra pass and move the ball but they have to be more aware when they do because the Pacers have been very good at getting into the passing lanes.  They are 3rd in the playoffs with 9.3 steals per game.  The Celtics must take better care of the ball as the turnovers have been making these games much closer then they should be. 

Defense - Defense wins Championships and for certain, defense will decide this series. The Celtics are second to Milwaukee in the playoffs with a defensive rating of 91.9.  The Pacers are 5th with a defensive rating of 101.4.   This game also will be a defensive dogfight and the team that plays the toughest, in your face, defense will likely get the win.  The Celtics need to clamp down on defense from the start and keep it up until the final buzzer.   

Rebound - Rebounding takes effort and desire and usually the team that wins the rebounding battle will come out on top in the game.  So far in the series, the Celtics are out-rebounding the Pacers 49.3 to 39.3 rebounds per game.  The Celtics must continue to crash the boards as a team to beat the Pacers to rebounds in this game as well. Rebounding takes effort and the Celtics must put out the extra effort to beat the Pacers on the boards.

Be Aggressive - Brad Stevens and Nate McMillan both said before Game 1 that the more physical team would have the edge. The Celtics have to be the more aggressive team on the road, especially. They have to be aggressive going to the basket and getting into the paint. They have to be aggressive in beating the Pacers to loose balls and rebounds. They have to be the more aggressive team on defense and they have to play harder than the Pacers for 48 minutes.

Play 48 Minutes - The Celtics must come out playing hard from the tip on both offense and defense and they have to continue that until the final buzzer sounds.  The Pacers will be desperate for a win in this game and will come out strong themselves and so the Celtics will need to match their energy.  They can't afford to have an offensive drought or to have a defensive let down.  They must play hard from start to finish. 

X-Factors
Road Game -  The Celtics are on the road once again and will be playing in front of a very hostile and loud crowd.   The players have to focus on the game and block out all the distractions that come with playing on the road.    The Pacers were a very good home team this season and so it will take extra effort and teamwork for the Celtics to win this one.   They can't let the crowd and the Pacers, who will be more aggressive at home, fluster them and take them out of the game.   

Closeout Game - The Closeout game on the road is one of the toughest games to win.  The Pacers will be extra motivated to get this win and avoid a sweep.  They will have the crowd behind them and so the Celtics need to be extra focused and play harder to overcome all those factors going against them. 
« Last Edit: April 20, 2019, 11:43:00 PM by FLCeltsFan »

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #1 on: April 20, 2019, 11:35:45 PM »

Offline csfansince60s

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Tp FlCsFan!

Go Cs!

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #2 on: April 20, 2019, 11:36:03 PM »

Online FLCeltsFan

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TP to  csfansince60s  for being the first to post in the game thread!!!!

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Playoff Celtics!!!!!

Sweep the Pacers!!!!!!

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #3 on: April 20, 2019, 11:37:35 PM »

Offline hwangjini_1

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Second!

Thanks for the thread flc. Tp. Celts need to bring out the brooms.

Goooooooooooooooooooo playoff Celtics!  ;D
I believe Gandhi is the only person who knew about real democracy — not democracy as the right to go and buy what you want, but democracy as the responsibility to be accountable to everyone around you. Democracy begins with freedom from hunger, freedom from unemployment, freedom from fear, and freedom from hatred.
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Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #4 on: April 21, 2019, 12:18:56 AM »

Offline footey

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Sweep!!

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #5 on: April 21, 2019, 12:22:45 AM »

Offline rondofan1255

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Hopefully a blowout to end it... with Timelord and Wanamaker and Yabu sightings

Go C’s
« Last Edit: April 21, 2019, 01:49:17 AM by rondofan1255 »

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #6 on: April 21, 2019, 12:48:37 AM »

Offline liam

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GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

CELTICS!!!!

TP FLCeltsFan!!!

TP csfansince60s!!!!

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #7 on: April 21, 2019, 02:54:17 AM »

Offline Ogaju

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GOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO CELTICS ...TP FlCf!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #8 on: April 21, 2019, 07:54:27 AM »

Offline Surferdad

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Not expecting a win, but if they do it would be a huge statement that the playoff-C's have arrived!

Pacers backs are against the wall.  Take advantage of that to force turnovers and get out on the break.

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #9 on: April 21, 2019, 08:10:17 AM »

Offline slamtheking

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TP for the thread that'll end this series FL.  great job as always

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #10 on: April 21, 2019, 08:27:06 AM »

Offline cltc5

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We need to finish this.  Bucks are gonna probably sweep too so we need all the rest we can get

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #11 on: April 21, 2019, 10:23:49 AM »

Offline SHAQATTACK

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i expect the C's are keen to finishing this



everything is on side of Pacers , home , crowd , backs against wall, pride ....everything except we got Irving who plays good in ANYBODIES gym.  I ll take  this advantage.

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #12 on: April 21, 2019, 10:49:51 AM »

Offline Phantom255x

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TP FLCeltsFan!

LETS GO C's!! ;D

Indiana will come out firing and with this possibly being their final game at home this season, I think they're going to give it 200% to extend this to a 5th game. I wouldn't be surprised if we lost this game.

I do love our mindset though. As Kyrie said, we know that the close out game is the hardest game usually and with MIL on their way to sweeping DET, it would be ideal to get the sweep ourselves. Game 5 isn't in 3 days so if it gets to that we'll have to wait a bit more. We have to do what we did in Game 3, and that's play a full 48 minutes and weather all their fierce runs.
"Tough times never last, but tough people do." - Robert H. Schuller

Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #13 on: April 21, 2019, 11:06:31 AM »

Offline nickagneta

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Going to need these today:


Re: Celtics (3-0) at Pacers (0-3) Round 1 Game 4 4/21/19
« Reply #14 on: April 21, 2019, 11:22:24 AM »

Offline Jboogey

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Feel free to use this one to smack talk all your pacer fan friends