Without its star, Pacers let another winnable game slip away in Game 3 loss to Celtics

INDIANAPOLIS -- Despite missing Tyrese Haliburton, the Pacers took an 18-point lead in a sensational shooting first half, but the Celtics took over in the second while the Pacers faded and Boston won 114-111 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Saturday night to take a 3-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference finals. It was the Pacers' first home loss in the playoffs and the first in either regular or postseason since March 18.

No NBA team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven series. Game 4 is Monday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse at 8 p.m.

Second guessing: Rick Carlisle explains why he didn't call timeout at end of Game 3 loss

Here are four observations.

Pacers attack paint, go off in first half but fade in second

With their most prolific 3-point shooter on the shelf in Haliburton, the Pacers focused more on getting the ball in the paint either in post-ups or off the dribble. They also weren't shy about taking mid-range shots, either in the mid-paint area or the between the paint and the 3-point arc. As a result they had a spectacular shooting first half even while not getting much from beyond the 3-point arc.

With a particularly sensational second quarter, the Pacers made 28 of 44 field goals (63.6%) in the first half. They were 3 of 8 from 3-point range, but had 42 points in the paint. They took a lead as big as 18 points in the first half and led 69-57 at halftime.

But in the second half they lost their shooting touch inside and never gained it outside. After the break, they made just 18 of 46 field goals and 2 of 13 3-pointers. Boston didn't shoot much better making 18 of 41 field goals, but they hit 6 of 22 3-pointers and 15 of 17 free throws. The Pacers were 4 of 4 at the line after the break. The Celtics outscored the Pacers 57-42 in the second half including 33-21 in the fourth quarter when the Pacers were 8 of 21 from the field.

The Pacers finished with 68 points in the paint to Boston's 40, but the Celtics hit 16 3-pointers to the Pacers' five. Jayson Tatum scored 36 points to lead the Celtics, Jaylen Brown had 24 and Al Horford had 23.

"We had a lot of guys stepping up into bigger minutes in Tyrese's absence," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "We slowed down a little bit down the stretch. That's the type of game where, the way we're set up right now, we've gotta keep tempo in the game. That's something that we gotta do. We missed some shots, there were some plays where they could have gone a different way. That's the best that I can say it."

The Pacers still led 109-101 after a driving layup by point guard T.J. McConnell with 2:38 to go, but the Celtics outscored them 13-2 down the stretch after that. A fadeaway by Brown, 3-pointers by Tatum and Horford and a driving layup by guard Jrue Holiday tied the game during a stretch when the Pacers missed two shots and only scored on two free throws by guard Andrew Nembhard. Holiday drew a foul on the layup and gave the Celtics a 112-111 lead with 39 seconds left.

Nembhard missed a jumper on the next possession, Tatum missed a driving after that, but the Pacers opted not to call a timeout and let Nembhard take the ball up the court. He ran into Holiday and turned it over and Holiday hit two free throws to put the Celtics up three with 1.7 seconds to go.

"With eight or nine seconds left and you're in transition after a miss, I trust our players to be able to create a better shot than calling a timeout, having them set their defense and run our end-of-game stuff that on video they've shown their players," Carlisle said. "It's more of a play-basketball type situation. And we've done well this year trusting our players."

The Pacers got forward Aaron Nesmith a look at the bucket with a play that looked a lot like a football pass pattern, but Nesmith missed at the buzzer and the Celtics took a 3-0 lead.

Andrew Nembhard plays spectacularly in Haliburton's absence

Andrew Nembhard has had to take the reins from Tyrese Haliburton before when the All-Star has been injured. He hasn't exploded in all of those games, but they do include some of the most spectacular games in his career, including last season's 31-point effort in a win at Golden State and a 26-point outburst in a win at Milwaukee. This year he had excellent performances in wins over Phoenix, Philadelphia and Memphis when Haliburton was on the shelf.

On Friday, especially in the first half, he was at his absolute best, getting downhill off the dribble but also drilling 3s. By halftime he had 21 points on 8 of 10 shooting, knocking down all three of his 3-point attempts including a 31-footer just before halftime.

"I think I just wanted to get the pace going," Nembhard said. "I think we play best when everybody's touching it, we're all moving and we're playing our Pacers hoops. I wanted to not necessarily force the issue but let it come to me a little bit. "

Nembhard finished with a career high 32 points on 12 of 21 shooting to go with nine assists. He made 4 of 7 3-pointers on a night when the rest of the team made just 1 of 15. He he missed a jumper for the lead with 34 seconds left, however, and drove at Holiday with five seconds left only to have the ball taken from him.

"I was trying to get a shot up," Nembhard said. "I lost the ball. Slipped. Turnover."

Myles Turner takes advantage of smaller defenders

Myles Turner burned Luke Kornet whenever the Celtics backup big man defended him in Game 1, so the Celtics crossmatched more frequently in Game 2 with smaller defenders on Turner and had success. Turner struggled with foul trouble and scored just eight points on 3 of 7 shooting, turning the ball over four times.

The Pacers expected that going into Game 3 so they attacked it early. Turner fed on post-ups on smaller players, including guards Jrue Holiday and Derrick White, and he scored 15 first-half points on 6 of 8 shooting.

Turner was 3 of 8 in the second half, however, finishing 9 of 16 from the floor with 22 points on 10 rebounds.

Pascal Siakam matches the moment in the first half

With one All-Star out, the Pacers needed their other one to take it up a notch. Siakam was excellent in Game 1 and Game 2 with 24 points and 28 respectively, and the Pacers needed him to match that effort.

He did in the first half and early in the second but was quiet after that.

Siakam provides the toughest matchup problem for the Celtics, who don't have a player 1-4 with quite his length. He backed Celtics defenders down and beat them with spin moves to the rim and turnaround jumpers, and at halftime he had 15 points on 6 of 10 shooting.

He finished with just 22 points, however, on 9 of 18 shooting. He scored just two points in the fourth quarter on 1 of 3 shooting despite playing the whole period.

"We did a good job in the first half, but in the second half, not as much," Siakam said. "They made runs and we weren't able to come back and have that same intensity. We had a couple of turnovers, and against a team like that, no team is safe, so we have to play well until the end."

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Without its star, Pacers let another get away in Game 3 loss to Celtics