INDIANAPOLIS — Boston played with the balance that’s needed in the postseason.
Now the Celtics have to keep it up for another month to get there.
Tyler Zeller scored 18 points, three of his teammates added 16 apiece and the surging Celtics held off a late charge for a 93-89 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Saturday night that could have big postseason implications.
Boston has won four straight and six of seven to move within a half-game of Charlotte for the No. 8 seed in the East.
“The greatest team you can become is the team that just plays the right way on the next play,” Coach Brad Stevens said. “You know they’re going to make a run. You just kind of wait for your opportunities on offense and you all play as well as you can defensively together. That’s the way we approached it.”
The homecoming for Zeller and Stevens couldn’t have turned out any better.
Zeller started fast and wound up 8 of 10 from the field with seven rebounds.
Stevens, who started his coaching career a few miles down the road at Butler, took a page right out of the Hoosier State’s playbook. His team shared the ball, defended, went toe-to-toe when necessary and continually found answers when Indiana challenged them.
Brandon Bass, Avery Bradley and Jae Crowder each scored 16 points. Bass finally sealed the win by making two free throws with 5.3 seconds to go, ending the Celtics’ three-game losing streak in Indiana and giving Boston a critical 2-1 series lead with the final matchup set for April 1 at Boston.
And Boston did all that against the hottest team in the league.
“We stuck with the game plan,” Crowder said. “Tough games really help your team out, especially late in the season when you’re trying to make a playoff push. We know it’s going to be tough, but we’ll stick with it.”
The Pacers tried but failed to follow the same plan on a rare off night.
George Hill rallied Indiana by scoring 24 of his season-high 30 points in the second half. He also had eight assists and five rebounds.
C.J. Miles had 13 points, while C.J. Watson and Rodney Stuck each added 12.
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