It was a homecoming of sorts for Celtics head coach Brad Stevens as he returned to the state of Indiana after coming to the Celtics from Butler University. It certainly didn't go as planned as the Celtics fell 106-79 to the Pacers, one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. It was the second straight loss for the Celtics.
The C's only trailed by three after one, but were outscored by 12 in the second quarter and then the rout was on. The Celtics only had three players in double figures led by Avery Bradley's 13 points while Jeff Green and Courtney Lee each added 11 in the loss. As a team the green only shot 38 percent from the field.
Paul George paced Indiana with 24 points in the win, a game in which the Pacers shot 49 percent from the field.
The Celtics will be off for the next five days before returning home Saturday afternoon (1:00, CSNNE) to play host to the Cavaliers.
What they'll be saying: Poor defense and poor shooting was a major reason for the Celtics being blown out in their final game before the Christmas break. The Pacers shot just under 50 percent from the field and the Celtics were pretty much the opposite, including 4-for-20 from three-point range. It certainly wasn't the way the Celtics would've liked to go into the mini-break, but they are still 12-17 and exceeding expectations.
