Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum was seen on the floor at Gainbridge Fieldhouse embracing his mother after his team clinched another berth in the NBA Finals.
Tatum hugged his mother, Brandy Cole, and shared some words with her as he celebrated his team’s sweep victory over the Indiana Pacers.
The star dropped 26 points, 13 rebounds, and eight assists as the top seeded Celtics earned themselves a spot in the NBA title series for the second time in three seasons.
Jaylen Brown was crowned Eastern Conference Finals MVP and led the team in scoring with 29 points. But it was a tiebreaking corner 3-pointer from Derrick White with 45 seconds left in regulation that solidified the 105-102 victory on Monday night at Indianapolis.
Andrew Nembhard had 24 points and a playoff career-high 10 assists for the sixth-seeded Pacers.
Jayson Tatum embraces his mother, Brandy Cole, after the Celtics victory over the Pacers
Tatum had 23 points, 13 rebounds, and eight assists in the sweep victory over Indiana
Boston overcame a nine-point, fourth-quarter deficit while once again playing better basketball down the stretch.
A defensive breakdown by the Pacers left White standing alone in the right corner on the decisive shot. Brown spotted him and got him the ball, and White’s shot swished through the net.
Nembhard missed a 3-pointer with 33.6 seconds left and Tatum got the rebound. Indiana decided not to foul, and Tatum missed a 3-pointer with 8.3 seconds remaining.
But Jrue Holiday collected the offensive rebound with 4.7 seconds left, and the Celtics then ran out the clock.
It was the second straight comeback win in Indianapolis for Boston, which overcame an eight-point deficit with 2:38 left in Game 3 to post a 114-111 victory.
Holiday had 17 points and nine rebounds on Monday and White added 16 points, five steals and three blocked shots for the Celtics, who will face either the Dallas Mavericks or Minnesota Timberwolves in the Finals.
Pascal Siakam had 19 points and 10 rebounds and T.J. McConnell added 15 points for Indiana. Aaron Nesmith scored 14 points and Obi Toppin added 12.
Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton (hamstring) missed his second straight game.
Jayson Tatum speaks to the media after Boston’s 105-102 victory in Game 4 of the ECF
The Celtics shot 44.9 percent from the field, including 14 of 44 from 3-point range.
Indiana made 46 percent of its shot attempts and was 10 of 29 from behind the arc.
McConnell scored six points in 64 seconds early in the fourth quarter to give the Pacers an 89-82 lead. A three-point play by Nembhard made it 94-85 with 8:57 remaining.
After Boston moved within four, Nesmith made back-to-back baskets to give Indiana a 98-90 lead with 5:56 to go.
The Celtics answered with an 8-2 run, moving within 100-98 on Holiday’s three-point play with 3:54 remaining.
Brown’s runner tied the score at 102 with 2:40 left.
Tatum scored 16 points before halftime as Boston led 58-57 at the break. Nembhard also tallied 16 points in the first half.
The Pacers took an 83-80 advantage into the final stanza.
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