INDIANAPOLIS -- It doesn’t matter how the Boston Celtics are playing or how obvious the Celtics’ game plan down the stretch is.
When the fourth quarter rolls around, the ball will find its way into the hands of Isaiah Thomas early and often.
And as we’ve seen most of this season, the 5-foot-9 Thomas continues to come up big for the Green Team when it matters most.
Thursday night at Indiana was yet another strong scoring night for the Celtics’ fourth-quarter assassin, as Thomas tallied 14 of his team-high 28 points in the final period of play as Boston left Bankers Life Fieldhouse with a 109-102 win.
Avery Bradley’s defense on Paul George (19 points, 5-for-16 shooting) was impressive all game. Jae Crowder (15 points on 5-for-9 shooting) and Amir Johnson (11 points, 5-for-7 shooting, six rebounds) came up big as well for Boston (17-12).
But when the fourth quarter arrived, the Celtics hit a stretch about midway through when the offense sputtered only to be re-ignited by Thomas who ranks among the NBA’s top scorers overall (26.7 points per game, 7th in the NBA) as well as in the fourth quarter.
After checking into the game with 7:36 to play, it took Thomas 104 seconds to make his first basket. He would go on to score eight of Boston’s next 11 points as they continued to generate enough offense to keep the hard-charging Pacers (15-16) at bay.
“The fourth quarter ain’t for everybody,” said Thomas whose 8.4 points in the fourth quarter is second in the NBA only to Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook (9.8 points in the fourth) whom the Celtics face Friday night at the TD Garden. “I just embrace the opportunity. I love the fourth quarter, I love when the game is close. I want to be that type of guy.”
As impressive as Thomas is in the fourth scoring the ball, he would be remiss if he didn’t make mention of the fact that a lot of those big shots he knocks down, are the collective efforts of his teammates doing their jobs well enough to where he can have an opportunity to make impactful plays in the game’s most pivotal moments.
“My teammates put me in position. They screen, they get me open,” Thomas said. “They look for me to score and make plays. I do what I’ve always done, I guess.”
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