Jaylen Brown has shooting against the Pacers

Celtics

“I have to do better for my boys.”

The Celtics had a poor shooting night against the Pacers on Wednesday night. In the loss to Indiana, they shot 40.4 percent from the field.

That's worse than the team's average 3-point percentage this season, which is 40.7 percent.

No shots were fired on Wednesday evening. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown batted a combined 21-for-55 from the field.

Brown's 3-point deficiency stood out. He went 1-for-11 from beyond the arc and hit a 3-pointer on the Celtics' final possession. Brown said he didn't have his legs underneath him on the final play and that he lacked explosion all night.

He took responsibility for the post-match struggles.

“Just try to figure out how to make a few stops. Just go out in transition. I felt like we looked really good tonight,” Brown told the media. “We didn’t really shoot the ball. Our energy was lackluster. I have to do better for my boys. Just converting at the rim, simple things, making open shots.”

It's the third time in five games that Brown has shot less than 40 percent from the field. However, his 3-point percentage is 39.3 percent, showing that his 3-point shooting issues have not led to a slump.

Although the Celtics suffered their first loss of the season, there were positives as Boston erased a 24-point deficit in the second half to send the game into overtime.

The Celtics' bench was strengthened during the comeback, said Brown.

“That second group that fought back helped us get back into the game in the fourth quarter. Payton (Pritchard) and Neemias (Queta) played great, played great tonight and it gave us a chance.

The Celtics turned up the defensive intensity and forced Indiana into 19 turnovers, but couldn't recover from the early hole they dug.

“I just wasn't converting open looks, wasn't physical enough on drives, finishing at the rim, and a lot of that was on me,” Brown said. “I have to be better for my boys, but I have to fight back. We had a chance to win, but in the end we just didn’t do it.”

The Celtics showed their ability to overcome large deficits in the loss. Although they came up short, they managed to turn what would have been a blowout game into one that was decided in the final seconds.

“It’s a luxury,” Brown said. “We have a good group, we have a good unit, but we can’t take that for granted. I can't take games for granted. We had a chance to win tonight but didn’t get it done, so we’ll definitely watch the film and be better in the future.”

Khari A. Thompson

Sports reporter

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Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.

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