This gave them a first-round playoff matchup with the 4th-seeded Atlanta Hawks, and a start to the series on the road.
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Boston’s lack of health reared its ugly head in an embarrassing blowout loss in Game 2, and while the Celtics were able to overcome such adversity to take Game 3, you have to wonder if that adrenaline is going to carry over into Game 4.
BOSTON (AP) – Isaiah Thomas’ preschool sons, James and Jaiden, did their best to sit quietly during his postgame news conference on Sunday before the elder tyke leaned over the microphone and said, “my daddy…is the best basketball player”.
One game after scoring a career-high 42 points – and one day after escaping suspension for taking a swipe at Atlanta’s Dennis Schroder – Thomas scored 28, including the last five of overtime to lead Boston to a 104-95 victory in Game 4 of the best-of-seven series. He delivered 13 points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals during the fourth quarter, all while slowing the Hawks’ Paul Millsap who finished with a game-high 45 points.
“We have to realize that if we lock this one up, we can close it out here without worrying about Game 7”, he said. “You need guys like that to win in the playoffs”.
“He was scoring so many different ways”. His success rate dipped to 25.3% from three-point land, the worst of any player who attempted more than 200 triples on the year.
“It was the right call”, Thomas said of the league’s ruling. “Then Isiah Thomas, just gave me a few tips I can’t tell you guys about”.
The Atlanta Hawks rank lower for their field goal percentage (11th) than their effective field goal percentage (sixth), while the Boston Celtics rank the same for both metrics (27th). “Now we’ve got to go home and respond”. The guard simultaneously scored 11 straight points for the Celtics during one stretch in the middle of the fourth, turning an 80-74 deficit into an 85-84 lead. “I don’t really define myself as any position, and I think that’s what’s been so unique about me growing up and playing ball”, said Smart. I have not been on the edge of my seat like I was last night for a Celtics game since the Big 3 era.
“When Marcus Smart is out there, the defensive energy he brings is kind of contagious”, Hawks wing Kent Bazemore told reporters after the game. “We probably got a little stagnant, just trying to get him the ball because (Millsap) was on such a roll”.
The Celtics led by four with under a minute to play in regulation when Teague hit back-to-back 3-pointers to give Atlanta the lead. But Thomas tied it with a drive and then came the botched final play, sending it to overtime.
“They got us out of whack”, Hawks guard Kyle Korver said. He then opened the overtime with a pair of assists to Amir Johnson.
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Millsap is also the latest to have an epic game in Boston and come away empty-handed, just like these players, whom we remember with the help of media accounts from the time. Instead, they were able to even the series in dramatic fashion. Oh, and that incident that Thomas had with Dennis Schroder? But he went 11-of-16 in the first half Sunday, also hitting 3-of-4 from behind the arc and grabbing eight rebounds. The big man didn’t record a double-double in the first three games and was held to a shocking 26 points in the first three games, including shooting 1-of-12 from the field in Game 2. Celtics F Kelly Olynyk, who missed the previous two games due to a shoulder injury, entered the game with a minute left in the opening quarter. Vince Carter was the only starter to play less than 33 minutes with Barnes on the court for more than 41.
