NBA highlights on May 25: Celtics rally to beat Pacers for a 3-0 lead

The Boston Celtics defeated the Indiana Pacers 114-111 in Game 3 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Saturday, extending their lead to 3-0 in the series.

The Pacers lacked their regular season assists leader Tyrese Haliburton because of a hamstring injury, but the rest of the team displayed remarkable offensive explosiveness, shooting 64.6 percent from the field in the first half and leading by as many as 18 points (84-66) in the third quarter.

Sophomore guard Andrew Nembhard made 12 of his 21 field goals (FGs), including draining four triples out of seven attempts, to score 32 points and nine assists, both team high and postseason career high, for the Pacers in Saturday's game. He had the chance to save the day when his side trailed by one point (112-111) with less than 10 seconds to go in the fourth period. However, when Nembhard tried to break in, he turned the ball over to Jrue Holiday.

Holiday was fouled when he charged the rim in transition. Though it was ruled as a common foul instead of a take foul so the Pacers would have ball back after the Celtics shot two free throws, Holiday made both of his shots at the free throw line to extend his side's lead to three points, leaving 1.7 seconds for the Pacers.

As Aaron Nesmith's 3-pointer from the right wing failed to go into the hoop, the Pacers suffered their first loss at home in this year's playoffs. They are now looking at a desperate 3-0 deficit that no team has ever overcome in NBA history.

Saturday's close win for the Celtics came from the incredible performances of their ace Jayson Tatum and veteran center Al Horford. Tatum went 12-for-23 from the field to get game-high 36 points in addition to 10 rebounds and eight assists with no turnover. Horford knocked down as many as seven triples out of 12 attempts to contribute 23 points, the third-most on his side.

The Celtics attacked with aggression from the beginning on Saturday. Tatum and Jaylen Brown gave full play to their size and athleticism advantages by charging the rim repeatedly. The two combined to get 34 points in the first half. Nonetheless, the Celtics were too inflexible on the defensive end, especially in the first half. They were obsessed with mismatch defense by having Horford guard Paskal Siakam in the middle and high posts. As a result, Myles Turner had a lot of opportunities to finish attacks over the head of smaller defenders in the low post. He made six of his eight attempts in the first two quarters to get 15 points.

Moreover, in general, the Celtics defenders showed strong intentions of closing out to shut down the Pacers outside the 3-point line. However, Nembhard and T.J. McConell made good use of such defense of the opponents to continuously attack the paint. McConell had 23 points off the bench. Siakam achieved good efficiency in the paint where he made seven of his 11 FGs to get 22 points.

The Pacers abandoned their major offensive weapon of 3-point shooting from the regular season in Saturday's game, but outscored the Celtics 68-40 in the paint. In response, the Celtics prioritized protection of the paint in the second half and had nine of their 12 blocks in the two quarters, including eight in the third period. They managed to limit the Pacers to 42 points at 38.3 percent from the field in these two quarters as an integral part of their rally.

Game 4 of the series will continue to happen at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on May 27.