Jaylen Brown glides to the basket for a layup during Wednesday's win over the Pacers when they shot just 31 3-pointers, second fewest in a game this season but had little trouble dispatching the Pacers.
Jaylen Brown glides to the basket for a layup during Wednesday's win over the Pacers when they shot just 31 3-pointers, second fewest in a game this season but had little trouble dispatching the Pacers.Finn Gomez for the Boston Globe
The sign of a quality team is winning on nights when it not as its best. The Celtics returned home Wednesday from a four-game, eight-day road trip and played in stretches as they were jetlagged.
Yet, the Celtics led the Pacers for the final 39:14 and rolled to a 119-104 win, knowing they were far from their best but relishing in their depth and consistency.
An example of that is the recent play of Sam Hauser, inserted back into the starting lineup on Jan. 3 and he has flourished in the past two weeks, especially beyond the arc. He converted 5 of 7 shots from the 3-point line and is 36 for 65 (55.3 percent) in his past six games.
Hauser is known as a 3-point specialist but coach Joe Mazzulla lauds him for his defensive effort, knowing he no longer has to pull Hauser out of games on key defensive possessions. It’s that type of versatility that has allowed the Celtics to prevail on nights when shots aren’t falling or in Wednesday’s case, when defenses are intent on limiting 3-point attempts.
Their 31 attempts were the second-lowest of the season yet the game was never really in doubt because the Celtics countered by attacking the basket, getting to the free throw line and being efficient on 2-point shots. And the defense also held the Pacers to 39.4 percent shooting and 26.7 percent from 3-point line.
Sam doing Sam things 👌🏻 pic.twitter.com/kqqxadZm4L
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) January 22, 2026
The Celtics won ugly Wednesday and that’s a beautiful thing.
“I think it’s important to be able to [win when you’re not playing well] and I think that’s where having a bunch of guys that can play at any time,” Mazzulla said. “To be able to go to different lineups and different things and just being able to win games. And that’s the point we always talk about, tomorrow in film, we shouldn’t know if we won or lost because we can clean up a bunch of stuff. When you can say hey these are the things we have to get better at and here are things we do well, that gives you a chance to win games in different ways.”
Derrick White and Payton Pritchard were a combined 8-for-22 shooting and 2 of 9 from the 3-point line, but they were also a combined plus-44 in their nearly 64 total minutes, meaning they were doing other productive tasks besides scoring.
Derrick White (right) draws an offensive foul against the Pacers' Pascal Siakam during the first quarter.
Derrick White (right) draws an offensive foul against the Pacers' Pascal Siakam during the first quarter.Barry Chin/Globe Staff
The reality is the remainder of the league is adjusting to the Celtics, trying to be more physical, run their shooters off the 3-point line and force their shooters into contested twos. In some games it has worked. The Celtics loss to the Pistons on Monday left bruises but also provided a blueprint for how other clubs plan on defending them.
Boston has six games before a difficult two-game road trip to Dallas and Houston in early February. All six of those games, the Celtics should be favorites. It’s a golden opportunity to build victories and momentum before the All-Star Break.
But the Celtics aren’t going to play their best in all six of those games. They have to continue to win when they are erratic or in Wednesday’s case, turnover prone. They committed 16 turnovers, five by Jaylen Brown, good for 19 Indiana points.
So they weren’t sharp nor as efficient as they could be. But they still made easier work of an inferior team. And they have developed an identity throughout this surprising season of expecting excellence and if that isn’t possible, play the game the right way.
Hence why the Celtics are third in the league in point differential. They are a tough team to blow out because they’re generally the hardest playing team.
“I would like to say very resilient, very tough,” Brown said. “Start of the season, the expectations weren’t high. These guys came in here and worked. And last year we were second in the East and halfway through the season we’re second in the East. That’s just a testament to the work ethic, the resilience of our head coach, of our leadership. It’s a testament of where we are right now.”
And there are small signs of individual progress and improvement. With the Celtics leading 103-88 with 7:05 left, Hauser took an inbounds pass from Derrick White near the 3-point line where Pascal Siakam was in hot pursuit, wanting to prevent a clean look.
Hauser offered Siakam a ball fake and then a spin, dribble and pull-up 2-point jump shot in Siakam’s face. That may have been the best individual move of Hauser’s career and it’s a prime example of the growth and development that’s occurred with several players this season.
“I know I’m capable of doing other things other than shooting a three,” Hauser said. “It’s what I am asked to do the most. That’s how I started to get on the floor in Boston and tried to run with that and become as great of a shooter as I am, also building off that. And the next phase to a shot is a shot fake and drive, so I know I am capable of it.
“Our margin for error is a lot less than it has been in the past but [Wednesday] was an outlier. We didn’t play great but just finishing a way to win, especially coming off a nine-day trip, is tough to do.”
But this team has developed a sturdy exterior and their championship past has prepared them for any challenge.
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Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at gary.washburn@globe.com. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.