The Boston Celtics play host to the Indiana Pacers on Friday night from the TD Garden in a crucial Eastern Conference showdown. The Pacers come into this one having grabbed a crucial road win the last time out, as they continue their push towards the playoffs. For Boston, wins in three of their last four have helped to right the ship after a rough start to March themselves. These two have split the first two meetings this season between the two sides, with the road team winning in each other's city. Boston is favored but it'll be interesting to see of Indiana can grab the upset.
Despite the lack of consistent success on the road this season, the Pacers have some confidence and momentum to lean on after taking down the Raptors on Wednesday night. They still only sit at 14-23 in true road games this season but they know Friday night is a great opportunity. The win on Thursday helped draw them even closer towards the Eastern Conference playoff picture, with them now sitting in 11th place, 1.5 games back of Chicago for the last playoff spot. The last time the Pacers went to Boston, they came home with a five-point win, though it'll be asking a lot of them to make it a road sweep of one of the NBA's best teams in this one. Expect the Pacers to put their best foot forward but it remains to be seen if that will be enough in this one.
The Pacers have a trio of injuries that they continue to monitor coming into Friday night. Kendall Brown (shin) and Tyrese Haliburton (ankle) both have been rul ed, with Haliburton's injury likely being impactful. One name to keep an eye on as tipoff approaches is Chris Duarte (ankle), who is questionable for this one and has missed the last four games.
“You want to put on a show when you come home and he has.”
in his first NBA game in Toronto Andrew Nembhard notched a double-double, scoring 25 points and dishing out 10 assists.?? pic.twitter.com/Ma3yz3QECU
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) March 23, 2023
While they escaped with the win against Toronto a few days ago, this one presents a much more challenging match up on both ends of the floor. On the offensive end, having to replace Haliburton's scoring is asking quite a bit, especially for a team that ranks 23rd in field-goal percentage, going up against one of the league's best defensive teams. Speaking of defense, Indiana's has been nearly non-existent and they'll need some of their experienced players to step up on that side of the court. Myles Turner (17.9 pgg, 7.5 rpg) expects to see plenty more touches in this one and against an undersized Boston frontcourt, should see plenty of success. Without much experienced scoring behind him, keeping pace with Boston's scoring appears to be an issue.
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