The Celtics once again used a late rally to best the Pacers in the final minute, completing the sweep to put Boston in its second NBA Finals in three years.
INDIANAPOLIS — Thanks to some late heroics from Jaylen Brown, the Boston Celtics have advanced to the NBA Finals for a second time in three years.
Brown, who finished with 29 points in Monday’s Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals, had a block on Andrew Nembhard then hit Derrick White for the game-winning 3-pointer inside the final minute — a shot that gave Boston its first lead since the opening moments of the second half.
It ended up being the difference in the Celtics‘ 105-102 victory over the Indiana Pacers, as Boston completed the sweep to reach the league’s championship round.
Brown was named the Larry Bird Eastern Conference finals MVP after averaging nearly 30 points on 51.7% shooting from the field in the series.
With the win, the Celtics ensured themselves a full 10 days off to rest up for the start of the NBA Finals, which will begin — regardless of what happens in the Western Conference finals that could end as soon as Tuesday night with a Dallas Mavericks win — on June 6 at Boston’s TD Garden.
A final couple of minutes that featured a bunch of turnovers both ways was ultimately decided by Brown first blocking Nembhard then kicking the ball out to White in the corner. From there, the Celtics escaped, as Nembhard missed a potential tying 3-pointer at the other end and, after a missed 3 by Boston’s Jayson Tatum, Jrue Holiday secured the offensive rebound to allow time to run out.
