Indiana Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton will miss Game 4 against the Boston Celtics Monday night with a hamstring strain.
Head coach Rick Carlisle confirmed his status to reporters pregame.
He’ll miss a second consecutive game after being sidelined with the injury in Saturday’s Game 3. With Haliburton on the bench, the Celtics rallied from an 18-point deficit to extend their lead in the Eastern Conference finals to 3-0. They can close the series out and clinch a berth in the NBA Finals with a win on Monday.
Haliburton’s absence will make an unprecedented task that much more daunting for the Pacers. No team in NBA history has ever rallied from a 3-0 deficit to win a playoff series. The Pacers will attempt to start a rally with their best player on the bench.
A two-time All-Star, Haliburton was voted All-NBA for the first time this season at 23 years old. He’s the catalyst for the league’s highest-scoring offense and averaged 20.1 points, a league-high 10.9 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game this season.
The Pacers thrived in the first half of Game 3 while opening a 69-57 halftime lead as rookie Ben Sheppard took Haliburton’s place in the starting lineup. Andrew Nembhard took the lead role in Indiana’s backcourt in Haliburton’s absence and posted one of the best games of his career with 32 points and nine assists while shooting 4 of 7 from 3-point distance.
But Indiana’s offense sputtered in after halftime, tallying 42 second-half points as the Celtics took control of the game in a 114-101 win. Indiana will need a better full-game performance Monday night to avoid being swept.
