Pacers lose heart-breaker, but Oladipo continues to shine
By TYLER SMITH (@TylerSmith_ISL)
ISL Editor
(Photo by Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS — What. Just. Happened?
I found myself asking that question numerous times at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Monday night.
The Celtics made their first ten shots.
Victor Oladipo was Michael Jordan in the second half.
The Pacers made an improbable comeback, and it was negated by an improbable comeback by the Celtics.
The end result- a 112-111 Celtics win over the Pacers in front of a stunned Indianapolis crowd.
Leading by a score of 111-110, the Pacers simply needed to hold onto the ball and they’d head to the free-throw line. Bojan Bogdanovic lobbed a pass that was stolen by Terry Rozier who then scored the game’s winning basket for Boston.
Lance talking about Bogdanovic- pic.twitter.com/gD1vFzXlSn
— Tyler Smith (@TylerSmith_ISL) December 19, 2017
“We lost our composure late in the game,” said Nate McMillan. “Some miscues cost us down the stretch.”
On the bright side for Indiana, Victor Oladipo continues to look like a definite All-Star.
Oladipo scored 38 points, including big shot after big shot late in the game. Coming into Monday night, he was sixth in the NBA in second-half points per game (13.0). He scored 30 in the second half in this one.
“Victor is showing that he wants the ball in his hands and deserves the ball in his hands,” said Nate McMillan. “You’re going to look to put the ball in the hands of a guy who makes plays.”
This has been a superstar type half from Oladipo. Every one of these, you start to believe a little more.
— Nate Duncan (@NateDuncanNBA) December 19, 2017
On a night where the Celtics shot an incredible 16-of-26 (62%) from 3-point range, it was Oladipo’s heroics that gave the Pacers a chance at another comeback win. Despite a gut-punch of a loss, Pacer should still be pleased at what they witnessed tonight from their rising star.
“It’s a tough, tough loss,” Oladipo said. “It was just a crazy game. We dug ourselves the deepest hole you can imagine, and again, fought our way back like clockwork. But we came up short again. It might sound cliche but it’s true- we can learn a lot from that game. We gave ourselves a chance to win and we competed with the best team in the Eastern Conference. We just have to continue to get better.”
For the Celtics, Kyrie Irving scored 30 points, including two huge 3’s in the final minute.
“That was one hell of a game to be a part of,” Irving said. “Credit to Indiana, who they are as individuals and as a group. They stayed the course the entire game, they fought back. Give credit to our defense in getting timely stops and staying the course as well.”
It was a tough loss for the Indiana Pacers, but most fans and media members thought there’d be no such thing as tough losses for this team this season. And with Oladipo running the show, even the losses have brought excitement and optimism back to Indianapolis.
And the reality is this: When you have a lot of heart, you’re going to have some heart-breaking losses.
“Stay together,” said Nate McMillan. “Don’t point fingers. This is tough to take, but we have to stay together.”
If you’ve watched the Pacers at all this season, you know that won’t be a problem. The Pacers will face the Atlanta Hawks on the road in their next game, and they’ll be eager to put this one behind them.
