▲ Jaylen Brown, from Boston, was in charge of sending the game to overtime, after making a basket with five seconds left. Photo @celtics
From the editorial staff
La Jornada Newspaper
Wednesday, May 22, 2024, p. a10
In a dramatic game that had to be decided in overtime, the Boston Celtics took the first game of the NBA Eastern Conference final by beating the Indiana Pacers 133-128 at the TD Garden in Boston.
Jayson Tatum and Jrue Holiday led the home offense with 36 and 28 points, respectively. For Indiana, the surprise team in the series, the best scorers were Tyrese Haliburton with 25 points and Paskal Siakam with 24.
Although the locals looked like favorites in the statistics, the game never had a significant advantage. Jaylen Brown of the Celtics created the drama when he scored from three points with five seconds left and sent the game to overtime, where the locals finally won.
On their way to the finals, the Celtics defeated the Miami Heat 4-1 in the quarterfinals. When they faced the Cleveland Cavaliers the story was the same: 4-1 victory.
Meanwhile, those coached by Rick Carlisle did not have the best regular season, as they finished in sixth position. However, when the series of playoffs, the Indiana team became unbeatable at home. At Gainbridge Fieldhouse he won all six games he played. Indiana has fought against all adversity and eliminated the Milwaukee Bucks and the New York Knicks.
Celtics and Pacers have met six times in playoffs, always in the first round. Boston achieved four victories (1991, 1992, 2003 and 2019) and Indiana two (2004, 2005).
It took the Pacers 10 years to return to the conference finals, while Boston reaches that stage for the third consecutive time and boasts the label of favorite team. In the regular season Celtis won 17 more games than Indiana.
Today the Dallas Mavericks and the Minnesota Timberwolves will meet in the NBA Western Conference Finals for the first time in US basketball history.
Timberwolves, who eliminated the Phoenix Suns and the current champions Denver Nuggets, want the first title in their history. Meanwhile, the team led by Slovenian Luka Doncic is seeking its third conference trophy (2006 and 2011).
2024-05-22 11:05:07
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