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Can Pacers Clean Up Play?

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Indiana Pacers know where improvement is needed on Thursday when they visit the Boston Celtics for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals.

The Pacers committed 22 turnovers in their 133-128 overtime loss in Game 1 on Tuesday, and those miscues led to 32 Boston points. The costliest turnover came with 8.5 seconds left in the fourth quarter while sixth-seeded Indiana was leading 117-114. Pascal Siakam couldn’t handle Andrew Nembhard’s inbounds pass, and he then allowed Jaylen Brown to make a game-tying 3-pointer that forced overtime.

“We had a lot of turnovers that would be hard to explain, but this is the conference finals in the NBA playoffs and these things happen,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. “As many turnovers as we had, our guys continued to play, continued to fight and found a way to get a three-point cushion and the ball. So at that point we just gotta finish it off.”

Aaron Nesmith (five) and Myles Turner (four) accounted for nine of the 22 giveaways, but Tyrese Haliburton also turned the ball over three times — including twice in key moments. He dribbled the ball off his foot when Indiana led by three with 27.7 seconds left in regulation, then lost the ball out of bounds with 1:02 remaining in overtime.

“I think it’s more on us,” Haliburton said. “They’re a great defensive team. They got great, great defenders — individual and team defenders — but they’re not a team who forces a ton of turnovers. They’re a solid, solid team. I just felt like more of (the turnovers) were probably on us than them forcing them. We got to clean that up, and outside of (Game 1) and one game last series, we’ve really taken care of the ball. So, we’ll fix it in Game 2.”

Top-seeded Boston has won Game 1 in each of its three playoff series this year, but it failed to win Game 2 at home against Miami in the opening round and against Cleveland in the conference semifinals.

After Thursday’s game, the best-of-seven series will shift to Indianapolis for Games 3 and 4.

Red Sox Sweep Tampa Bay

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ST. PETERSBURG – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Wilyer Abreu and Connor Wong each drove in a pair of runs as the Red Sox completed a three-game sweep of the host Tampa Bay Rays with an 8-5 win on Wednesday.

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Rob Refsnyder’s leadoff single was the lone Boston hit through four innings against Tampa Bay starter Ryan Pepiot, but a five-run, five-hit fifth inning against three pitchers flipped the script of the game for good.

Abreu hit a two-run home run in the big inning. Refsnyder matched him with a 2-for-4 performance. Ceddanne Rafaela crossed the plate twice.

Brayan Bello (5-2) struck out six across six innings of four-hit, three-run ball to earn the win for the Red Sox, who secured their first road sweep of the Rays since April 2019.

Tampa Bay’s Jose Caballero and Richie Palacios each had two hits and scored a run.

Caballero and Yandy Diaz each drove in two.

A walk and a hit batter set the table for Rafaela’s ground-ball single to left to put the Red Sox on the board in the fifth and end the day of Pepiot, who was charged with three runs on two hits and four walks over the first four-plus innings.

Pepiot’s ledger grew with Richard Lovelady (0-2) on in relief after Wilyer Abreu singled and Connor Wong knocked a two-run base hit to left that tied the game.

Celtics Survive OT with Win vs Pacers

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Jayson Tatum scored a game-high 36 points and added 12 rebounds as the Celtics earned a 133-128 overtime victory against the visiting Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals. Tatum scored 10 points in overtime, including six straight that gave the top-seeded Celtics a 127-123 lead with 42.9 seconds to play.

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Jrue Holiday added 28 points and Jaylen Brown finished with 26 points in the win. After Brown drained a corner 3-pointer that made it 117-117 with 6.1 to play in regulation, Tyrese Haliburton missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer and the game went to overtime.

Haliburton had 25 points and 10 assists, and Pascal Siakam finished with 24 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists for the Pacers. Myles Turner added 23 points in the loss.

Indiana made 9 of 10 free throws in the game. Boston was 24 for 30 from the free-throw line.

The Pacers committed 22 turnovers.

The Celtics scored the game’s first 12 points and led 34-31 after one quarter. Boston had a 47-37 lead after Holiday’s jump shot with 8:01 remaining in the second quarter. Indiana tied the score, 61-61, on Haliburton’s 3-pointer with 1:19 left in the half. It was 64-64 at halftime.

Turner led all scorers with 18 points in the first half.

Indiana had its first lead of the game after Haliburton’s layup broke a 64-64 tie with 11:25 remaining in the third quarter. The Pacers stretched their lead to five, but Boston regained control and led 87-75 after Tatum’s three-point play with 4:50 left in the third capped a 13-0 run.

The Pacers used a 9-0 spurt to pull within four points, 92-88, late in the third. Indiana trailed 94-93 entering the fourth after Haliburton banked in a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the third.

–Field Level Media

Red Sox Pick Up the Pieces

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ST PETERBURG – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – After clinching their first series win at Tropicana Field since July 2019, the Boston Red Sox will aim for a sweep of their three-game set against the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday evening in Florida.  The Red Sox picked up Tuesday’s series-clinching victory in exciting fashion, scoring three runs over the final two innings to record a 5-2 win.

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Jarren Duran was one of Boston’s stars, hitting a game-tying solo home run in the sixth inning before stealing home in the eighth to deliver a crucial insurance run. He now has hit safely in seven straight games.

“He can run. He can hit it out of the ballpark. He’s a good defender. And I’m glad he’s our leadoff guy,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said.

The series also has featured some history for third baseman Rafael Devers, who set a Red Sox record by homering in six consecutive games before going 1-for-3 on Tuesday.

Right-hander Brayan Bello (4-2, 3.96 ERA) will take the mound for Boston on Wednesday after he just missed facing Tampa Bay in last week’s series at Fenway Park, having his three-game win streak snapped in a Friday outing at St. Louis. The Cardinals tagged him for five runs on seven hits, three of which were home runs.

Before his last start, Bello had worked at least five innings and issued two or walks or less in six consecutive outings dating to last season.

“The team did everything possible to score runs,” Bello said of his most recent start, a 10-6 loss to the Cardinals. “They gave me some run support, but I wasn’t able to make the adjustment tonight, and it was a bad outing for me.”

Bello is 1-3 with a 6.92 ERA in five career starts vs. Tampa Bay.

The Rays will look to avoid a season-high fourth straight loss and a sweep on Wednesday, though Isaac Paredes enjoyed a 3-for-4 night with a double and two RBI on Tuesday.

Paredes has a team-high 18 multi-hit games and has reached base in 19 of his last 20 overall.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s just part of his continued development in being a really good major league hitter,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said last week. “I think (the recent run is) a credit to just him being selective at the plate, getting pitches that he can handle and not swinging at pitches that he can’t.”

Cash’s club will need more from the third baseman, as it has scored just four runs over the last three games.

Tampa Bay right-hander Ryan Pepiot (3-2, 3.68 ERA) will be activated off the 15-day injured list to make his first career start against Boston on Wednesday.

The 26-year-old left his May 5 start against the New York Mets with a lower left leg contusion after being hit by a line drive. He allowed three runs in two innings before the injury.

Pepiot threw three simulated innings last Friday in Toronto, touching 95 miles per hour.

“It was what, 15 days? So, basically, just like missing two starts kind of, so there (weren’t) really a lot of factors into (making a rehab start),” Pepiot said. “It was a lot of just based on when I did touch the mound and how it felt and how it responded.”

Pepiot earned his most recent win on April 29 at Milwaukee, tossing six shutout, two-hit innings with seven strikeouts.

–Field Level Media

Sox: Three in 8th Is Enough

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ST. PETERSBURG – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Boston Red Sox scored three runs over the eighth and ninth innings en route to a 5-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday in Florida Jarren Duran and Reese McGuire both homered as Boston took the first two games of the three-game series, giving the Red Sox their first series win at Tropicana Field since 2019.

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Boston got to Rays reliever Jason Adam (2-1) for two decisive runs in the eighth inning, which began with Ceddanne Rafaela singling and stealing second before scoring on Wilyer Abreu’s base hit into center.

Abreu was later tagged out overrunning second base on a steal, but Duran soon swiped home as part of a double steal with Rafael Devers, who had been intentionally walked. Devers’ six-game home run streak ended on Tuesday.

McGuire then homered to right-center in the ninth to close the scoring.

Greg Weissert (2-1) earned the win, and Kenley Jansen worked around a leadoff double in the ninth for his eighth save.

Isaac Paredes went 3-for-4 with both Tampa Bay RBIs.

The Rays recorded just three hits after the first inning.

After being shut out in Monday’s series opener, the Rays came out swinging and scored two runs during a four-hit first inning to take the lead. Josh Lowe’s leadoff single and a Randy Arozarena double set the table for Paredes to drive home both runners with a single.

The Red Sox got right back in the game on Vaughn Grissom’s run-scoring single in the second.

Boston starter Cooper Criswell settled in after the shaky start, allowing two runs and six hits in 5 1/3 innings. He walked one and struck out six.

After Jose Siri led off the home half of the second with a single, Criswell retired nine straight batters before walking Alex Jackson with one out in the fifth.

Criswell’s fine work allowed the Red Sox to come back and tie the game when Duran launched a solo homer to center in the sixth.

Tampa Bay starter Zack Littell struck out seven in 5 2/3 innings, allowing only three hits and two runs. He walked one.

–Field Level Media

Pacers vs. Celtics: Whole Lotta Offense

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Based on past performance, it’s unlikely that generating good offense will be a problem for either team when the Indiana Pacers visit the Boston Celtics for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals Tuesday night.

Sixth-seeded Indiana led the NBA in scoring during the regular season, when it averaged 123.3 points per game. Top-seeded Boston averaged 120.6 points per contest in the regular season, which ranked No. 2.

The Pacers shot 67.1 percent from the field — an NBA playoff record — when they beat the host New York Knicks 130-109 in Game 7 of the conference semifinals Sunday. Tyrese Haliburton led the way with a 26-point performance.

“I’m just proud of this group,” Indiana’s Myles Turner said. “This is the most special group I’ve been around since I’ve been here. We all play for each other. There’s no ego. When you have guys who can score 15-plus points every single night — seven, eight guys — there can be a lot of ego involved with that, and we were able to nip that in the bud a lot early in the season.

“And obviously having Pascal (Siakam) coming here midway through the season, adding his leadership and everything he’s able to provide for us offensively and defensively has been huge. … We’re not done yet.”

Haliburton averaged a team-high 20.1 points per game during the regular season, but Siakam is the team’s leading scorer in the playoffs (21.2). The Pacers have scored at least 140 points 11 times this season.

“I think it’s just the old-school way of thinking that you can’t play this fast in the playoffs, but I think opportunistically you can do it,” Haliburton said. “I think if we’re able to get stops, of course we can.”

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown do most of the heavy lifting on the offensive end for the Celtics. Through 10 playoff games Tatum is averaging 24.3 points and 10.4 rebounds. Brown is averaging 23.1 points and 6.6 rebounds per game in the postseason.

“We understand what we can do individually,” Tatum said. “Each night just kind of presents different challenges and being ready and up for the task to do whatever is needed because both of us are capable on the basketball court to do literally everything.”

Indiana dispatched the Milwaukee Bucks in the opening round before it eliminated New York. Boston advanced by defeating the Miami Heat in the first round and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the conference semifinals. Each series went five games.

The Celtics will likely be without center Kristaps Porzingis, who will reportedly miss at least the first two games of the series with a calf injury. Porzingis was injured during Game 4 of Boston’s series against Miami. The Celtics have a 5-1 record in the playoffs when Porzingis hasn’t played.

“You know that he wants to play,” Boston’s Jrue Holiday said. “You know that he wants to get out there and play with his teammates, but then seeing him out there and seeing him working has been good. And honestly just hope that he recovers fast so that we can get him back out there.”

Boston won three of five meetings against Indiana during the regular season.

“Really excited to get back out there and play,” Holiday said. “Seems like we’ve been off for a while, so excited to get out there Game 1, kind of get it started.”

–Field Level Media

Red Sox and Rays Meet Again

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TAMPA-ST.PETE – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Tampa Bay Rays will play an 11th straight game against an American League East foe on Monday evening when they open a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox in Florida.

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The Rays are a combined 6-4 against the New York Yankees, Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays in the 10-game stretch. They took three of four last week from the Red Sox and have had the upper hand over the past five-plus seasons against Boston.

Manager Kevin Cash’s squad sports a 57-31 mark against the Red Sox since 2019, although Boston claimed the most important triumphs when it won three of four games in the 2021 AL Division Series.

Last week in their first matchups between the teams in 2024, Tampa Bay overcame an awful gaffe before posting a series win. With two outs and Jason Adam trying to close a series-clinching win, the reliever yielded a walk to Rob Refsnyder and a single to Rafael Devers, prompting a mound visit from Rays pitching coach Kyle Snyder.

However, the Rays were out of visits — a fact noted on the Fenway Park scoreboard — and Adam was removed for swingman Erasmo Ramirez, who prevented further embarrassment by getting a game-ending comebacker.

“Hundred percent on me. I let the mound visits slip in my mind,” Cash said. “I screwed up, and I’m glad that it didn’t cost us a ballgame.”

With left-handed reliever Colin Poche (back) on the injured list, the Rays made a trade Saturday for southpaw Richard Lovelady. He specializes in retiring left-handed hitters, with a .235 career average against him.

Garrett Cleavinger currently is the only bullpen option from that side.

Tampa Bay’s seven-game road trip ended on a sour note as the Blue Jays topped the Rays 5-2 on Sunday.

Isaac Paredes homered with two outs in the ninth to keep the Rays from being blanked for the second time this season as Tampa Bay lost for the first time in the past five games.

“Awesome, we’re rolling,” said catcher Ben Rortvedt, who had one of his team’s four hits. “We didn’t end the road trip the way we should have, but we feel good.”

Boston snapped a four-game losing streak Sunday by way of six excellent innings of one-hit, one-run ball from starter Nick Pivetta and homers from Tyler O’Neill and Devers in an 11-3 win at the St. Louis Cardinals.

O’Neill, a former Cardinals player, rocked a 439-foot shot in the first inning. Devers stepped up in the sixth, tying Bobby Dalbec’s franchise record with a homer in his fifth straight game.

“Pretty special weekend for me and my family,” O’Neill told The Roku Channel. “Circled this one on the calendar for a long time coming.”

Monday’s meeting will be a rematch between Tanner Houck and Taj Bradley, who squared off Wednesday in the Rays’ 4-3 victory.

Houck (3.15, 2.17 ERA) allowed three runs, only one earned, and five hits in 5 2/3 innings with seven strikeouts en route to dropping his fourth straight decision.

Across 58 innings, the right-hander has allowed 14 earned runs and 48 hits. He has surrendered one home run, and his 1.02 WHIP and .219 batting average against are elite.

In six career appearances (four starts) against the Rays, Houck is 0-4 with a 5.91 ERA.

Bradley (1-1, 2.45 ERA) won Wednesday’s game with five innings of two-run ball on four hits with six strikeouts.

The right-hander is 3-0 with a 4.20 ERA in three career starts against the Red Sox.

–Field Level Media

Panthers Send Bruins to Early Summer

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BOSTON – Florida’s Gustav Forsling’s rebound goal with 1:33 left in regulation lifted the visiting Panthers to a 2-1, series-clinching win over the host Bruins in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Friday.

Anton Lundell had his initial shot stopped by Boston goaltender Jeremy Swayman (26 saves), but from the left side Forsling slipped the loose puck inside the near post for the deciding goal.

Lundell finished with a goal and an assist after scoring the tying tally at 12:44 of the second, helping the Panthers to their sixth straight playoff win at TD Garden.

Pavel Zacha scored Boston’s lone goal.

Sergei Bobrovsky made 22 saves for Florida, including nine in the third period.

Bruins captain Brad Marchand returned to the lineup following a two-game absence due to an upper-body injury.

After the Bruins were unable to clear a shot blocked by Jake DeBrusk, Lundell picked up a loose puck in the slot and unleashed a dart to beat Swayman and tie the game at 12:44 of the middle frame.

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A rollercoaster first period saw the Bruins post the first four shots on goal before a span of 14:11 without one, but Zacha buried the opening goal — the first of his 25-game playoff career — with 52.8 seconds left to make it 1-0.

DeBrusk continued his strong playmaking run with a dish off the neutral zone wall to spring Zacha for the breakaway, which he brought to his backhand and slipped under the crossbar.

Bobrovsky came up with several key saves in the second period that allowed his Panthers to tie the game, including denying Justin Brazeau’s one-timer on the same shift as Lundell’s goal.

Florida looked to take a 2-1 lead in the opening minute of the third. Brandon Montour took a slapper from the right point that Swayman initially thought beat him through the five-hole, but the Boston netminder had the puck behind his pads after it clanked off the post.

Bobrovsky made another important stop eight minutes into the final frame, holding both posts to keep out Charlie McAvoy’s driving attempt to the crease.

Neither team could cash in on a power-play attempt late in the third period, which included 22 overlapping seconds of 4-on-4.

–Field Level Media

Red Sox Face Cards for 3-Game Set

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ST. LOUIS – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – After losing three of their past four games at home, the Boston Red Sox will try to regroup on their six-game road swing. That journey begins when they open a three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night.

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The Red Sox are coming off a 7-5 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday night in one their best offensive games of the month. Jarren Duran (3-for-5, homer, two doubles, two runs) and Rafael Devers (2-for-4, homer, two runs) led the attack. Devers has hit a homer in consecutive games while Duran is 5-for-8 with four doubles and three runs in his past two outings.

But since May 2, the Red Sox have scored three or fewer runs nine times. They went 4-9 during that period to fall further off the pace in the American League East.

The Red Sox will open the series with starting pitcher Brayan Bello (4-1, 3.13 ERA), who came off the 15-day injured list to earn a 3-2 victory over the Washington Nationals in his most recent start. He allowed those two runs on four hits over five innings while striking out one and walking two.

“For his first one coming out of the IL? Good,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “Gave us five, two runs. So now he’ll be ready for the next one.”

Right lat tightness had knocked Bello out of the starting rotation for a few turns.

“Feels good to be back, feels good to help the team win and also it feels good that a lot of good things are happening for us right now,” Bello told reporters through the team interpreter. “A lot of guys are coming back, so it feels really nice.”

This will be his first career appearance against the Cardinals, who have lost 10 of their past 14 games.

St. Louis will counter with starting pitcher Kyle Gibson (2-2, 3.67). He received a pair of no-decisions over his past two starts, allowing five runs (four earned) on 10 hits in 11 innings.

Gibson struck out 11 and walked six in those games. He didn’t receive much in terms of run support, which has been a persistent problem for St. Louis this season.

During their 7-2 loss to the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday, the Cardinals were 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position. They went 11-for-73 while posting a 3-4 record on their trip against the Milwaukee Brewers and Angels.

Still, St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol said he believes his team is in a better place ahead of this Boston series after taking two of three from the Angels.

“Road trip started in a bad way,” Marmol said Wednesday in Anaheim Calif. “Look at how those first games, especially that second game in Milwaukee (an 11-2 loss last Friday). They weren’t good at all. The third game (a 5-3 loss last Saturday) I actually felt like we got beat. We didn’t beat ourselves. And that was the turning point for how the rest of the series went in Milwaukee and how the first two games went here. Feel good going back home. Really do.

“We’re in a much better spot. All areas of the game look like they’re supposed to right now. The offense is starting to click. And that’s what we’ve been missing. It feels right.”

Gibson is 4-4 with a 3.41 ERA in 10 career starts against the Red Sox.

–Field Level Media

Celtics Eliminate Cavaliers

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s center Al Horford had 22 points and 15 rebounds as the host Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference finals by handing the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers a 113-98 loss in Game 5 of a semifinal series on Wednesday night.

Top-seeded Boston won the best-of-seven series 4-1. The Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference finals for the third straight season and for the sixth time in the past eight years.

Jayson Tatum added 25 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists for Boston. The Celtics led by just three points early in the fourth quarter but extended the lead to 14, 101-87, on a Tatum 3-pointer with 6:45 to play. The Cavaliers didn’t threaten after that.

It was a skeleton crew that took the court for Cleveland, which played without star guard Donovan Mitchell (calf), center Jarrett Allen (rib) and guard Caris LeVert (knee).

The calf injury also caused Mitchell to miss Cleveland’s 109-102 loss in Game 4 on Monday night. Allen didn’t play in the series, and LeVert was coming off a 19-point performance in Game 4.

Evan Mobley had a game-high 33 points and seven rebounds for the fourth-seeded Cavaliers. He made 15 of his 24 field-goal attempts.

Cleveland received a season-high 25 points from Marcus Morris Sr., who made 5 of 6 3-point attempts.

It was 28-28 after one quarter. Cleveland used an 18-6 run to take a 46-40 lead in the second quarter, but Boston responded with a 13-2 spurt that put the Celtics in front 53-48. Boston had a 58-52 lead at halftime.

The Celtics had a 69-57 advantage with 8:41 remaining in the third quarter after a Horford 3-pointer capped an 11-0 run. Cleveland kept fighting back, however, and was within seven points, 85-78, at the end of three quarters.

Cleveland failed to score 100 points in eight of its 12 playoff games.

–Field Level Media