The Boston Celtics will try to avoid their first three-game losing streak of the season when they face the Indiana Pacers at home on Friday night.
The Celtics are coming off two losses, falling to the Orlando Magic 108-104 and the Philadelphia 76ers 118-114. The loss to the 76ers also dropped Boston’s home record to 11-5, which is already more home losses than they had all of last season when they finished with a 37-4 record at TD Garden.
“We’re playing inconsistent basketball, so we’ve got to be better at both ends of the floor,” said Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla. “Got to be more consistent at both ends of the floor.”
The loss on Christmas Day to the 76ers was Boston’s second straight defeat, the first time they’ve lost back-to-back games this season. They have a 3-4 record over their last seven games.
“I think that’s a fair criticism from (Mazzulla),” said Al Horford regarding the coach’s comments on inconsistency. “We have to really dive into our work a little more and understand that we can’t relax during periods of the game, no matter the circumstance.
We have to make sure that we’re a little better in that regard, and with this group, I know that we’re capable of getting it together. Now, we have to look at this opportunity to play Indiana and come out with better effort and intensity.”
Injuries are still a concern for the Celtics. They were without Jrue Holiday (shoulder) in the loss to the 76ers, and Kristaps Porzingis suffered an ankle injury in the first half. Both players are listed as questionable for Friday’s game.
“We’ve got to be better,” said Jayson Tatum. “It’s still a long season. Nobody’s panicking. We’ve got to handle the emotional roller coaster of the NBA season. It feels a lot worse than it actually is. We’re not panicking or anything. We’ve just got to man up and look in the mirror and figure out some things that we’ve got to do better.”
Indiana will look to beat Boston for the second time this season. On October 30, the Pacers won 135-132 in overtime after Pascal Siakam hit a three-pointer with 6.1 seconds left to break a tie.
Unlike Boston, Indiana has been playing strong basketball recently, but their five-game winning streak ended with a 120-114 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday.
The Pacers may be without Obi Toppin for Friday’s game. He sprained his left ankle in the first quarter against the Thunder and was helped off the court. He returned briefly but didn’t play in the second half.
Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said, “It didn’t seem like it was that bad initially, then he felt it when he went back out. I certainly assume he’ll miss (the game against Boston) and we’ll see. He’s been a guy who’s bounced back quickly.”
The Celtics and Pacers will meet again on Sunday in Boston.
