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Stefan Tonev
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Celtics survive OT shootout vs Pacers
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NBA-leading Boston travel to third-placed Philadelphia on Saturday

Jayson Tatum (31) and Jaylen Brown (30) scored 61 combined points to lead the Western Conference leaders Boston Celtics to a hard-fought 142-138 overtime victory over the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night.

It was 138-all with 56.2 seconds left before Tatum hit a pair of free throws. He capped the scoring with a tip-in off the glass with 10.4 seconds to go.

“I’m glad we won,” said Tatum, who had only six points at halftime.

“I just tried to find ways to make plays on both ends so we could win and everybody could feel better about themselves.”

The NBA-leading Celtics returned to the court after the All-Star Game break with a game with 17 lead changes by the end of regulation.

“It had a playoff-like atmosphere, we had to withstand some runs, we had to adjust, we had to execute and make plays,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said.

“I liked the fact we had to go through that. You have to win games like that and you have to be in games like that.”

Myles Turner finished with career high 40 points for the Pacers. He made a career-best eight 3-pointers and Indiana shot 22 of 49 overall on 3s.

Tyrese Haliburton poured in 22 points and added 14 assists. Buddy Hield, the league’s 3-point leader, made four 3s and finished with 18 points. Bennedict Mathurin finished with 19 points off the bench.

The two teams posted nearly identical shooting lines, with the Celtics shooting 52% from the field, 42% from three and 86% from the line, while the Pacers recorded marks of 52%, 42% and 85%, respectively.

Next up, the Celtics have a weekend primetime matchup with implications in the Eastern Conference. They’ll travel to Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday.

The Pacers visit Orlando Magic on Saturday.

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