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Celtics dominate Pacers for 4th straight win

Maddie Meyer / Getty Images Sport / Getty

BOSTON (AP) Marcus Morris had 22 points and eight rebounds, Jayson Tatum had 20 points and the Boston Celtics routed the Indiana Pacers 135-108 on Wednesday night.

Kyrie Irving had 12 points before sitting out the fourth quarter, and the Celtics put together their highest scoring game this season to get their fourth straight win.

Boston (25-15) also ended a three-game skid against the Pacers, who entered the night third in the Eastern Conference. The Celtics had seven players score in double figures.

Jaylen Brown scored 22 points, Gordon Hayward had 14 and Daniel Theis added 12 points and six rebounds off the bench. Terry Rozier had 12 points and five assists, and the Celtics got at least 30 assists in their fifth straight game.

Domantas Sabonis had 20 points and seven rebounds for the Pacers (27-14), who had won seven of eight. Thaddeus Young had 10 points and eight rebounds, and Victor Oladipo scored 17 points.

The Pacers never led and fell to 5-2 in the second of back-to-back games this season. They wilted in the second half after beating Cleveland 123-115 the previous night.

Boston led 68-53 at halftime after shooting 56.5 percent (26 for 46) in the first half.

Indiana used a 10-2 run early in the third and cut the margin to 79-67 on Sabonis' hook shot with 5:31 left in the period, but Boston took off again and topped 100 points before the quarter was over.

Theis converted a three-point play to start the Celtics on a 12-3 run, and Boston closed out the period with another surge, getting back-to-back 3-pointers by Rozier for a 100-74 lead with 1:27 left.

TIP-INS

Pacers: Tyreke Evans scored 15 points and Kyle O'Quinn had 11. ... Bojan Bogdanovic was called for a technical foul with 8:43 left in the first quarter. ... Young was called for another technical for saying something from the Pacers' bench with two minutes left in the third quarter, and coach Nate McMillan got one with 16 seconds left in the period. ... C Myles Turner was out with a sore right shoulder.

Celtics: Scored 68 in the first half, one point shy of their season-high for points in a half. ... Topped their previous high of 133 points scored against Chicago on Dec. 6. ... Tatum scored nine of Boston's first 11 points and had 11 in the first quarter, going 5 for 6. ... Al Horford had eight assists, one short of his season high.

UP NEXT

Pacers: At New York on Friday night.

Celtics: Open up a three-game road trip Thursday night at Miami.

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