NBA Playoffs: Jaylen Brown’s clutch 3 stuns Indiana as Celtics snatch Game 1 from Pacers in overtime

The Indiana Pacers seemed to have a Game 1 surprise in hand.

Jaylen Brown had other ideas.

The Boston Celtics All-Star surprised the Pacers with a three-pointer in the final seconds of regulation to tie Game 1 of Tuesday’s Eastern Conference finals at 117-117. The game then went into overtime, where the Celtics won 132-128 to take a 1-0 series lead.

The Pacers led 115-110 late and appeared to have control of the ball and a 117-114 advantage with 10 seconds left in regulation. But they turned the ball over on a sloppy inside pass to breathe new life into the Celtics. Brown took full advantage.

With Pascal Siakam facing him, Brown launched a 3-pointer from the left corner that found the back of the net with the clock showing 5.7 seconds to secure the extra session.

There, Jayson Tatum scored 10 points, including a 3-pointer with 42.8 seconds left to extend Boston’s lead to 127-123. From there, the Celtics controlled the game which saw dramatic changes from both sides from the start of the game. Boston walks with the early lead into a series they are heavily favored to win.

Indiana leaves with a bitter taste, having missed a golden opportunity to take a 1-0 advantage over the NBA’s best team from the regular season as the No. 6 seed in the East. On a night where they shot 53.5% from the field and 37.1% from 3, the late turnover that allowed Brown to score a 3-pointer was the defining play of the night for the Indiana.

Indiana had possession of the ball in the backcourt on an inside play with 10 seconds left. Andrew Nembhard was the man on the grounds and initially turned to Tyrese Haliburton on the baseline. As Jrue Holiday smothered Haliburton, Nembhard then turned to a sharp Siakam. But Brown was in pursuit and played on Nembhard’s soft pass. The ball bounced off Siakam’s hands out of bounds to allow Brown to score the game-tying 3-pointer.

The turnover was one of 21 of the night for Indiana on a night where their offense was otherwise excellent. But the giveaways ultimately cost the Pacers the game. They turned the ball over three more times in overtime, including twice in the final 1:02.

The game got off to a worrying start for the Pacers, who found themselves in a 12-0 hole less than 3 minutes into the first quarter. But Indiana’s league-best offense bounced back to tie the score at 64-64 at halftime, thanks in part to a Haliburton logo 3 in the final seconds of the second quarter.

The clutch 3 was one of many for Haliburton, who shot 6 of 14 from long range while totaling 25 points, 10 assists and three steals. He hit another one early in the third quarter to give Indiana a 69-64 advantage.

But the Celtics fought back with a 13-0 run later in the quarter to take an 87-75 lead. The Pacers committed three turnovers during the Boston drive. But they didn’t want to.

They responded with an 18-7 run, capped by another Haliburton three-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer to cut Boston’s lead to 94-93.

The fourth quarter then became tense before the fateful final seconds ultimately secured Boston’s victory.