The Indiana Pacers overcame a double-digit deficit and an injury to star point guard Tyrese Haliburton to rally for a thrilling 133-131 win over the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Celtics on Monday.

Indiana earned its seventh win in eight games despite trailing by 11 points in the third quarter and playing the entire second half without Haliburton, the team's top scorer who had to be carried off the court after slipping and straining his left hamstring late in the second quarter.

Bennedict Mathurin helped offset Haliburton's absence with 26 points off the bench, while Buddy Hield scored 10 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter to help the Pacers also withstand a season-high 40 points from Boston's Jaylen Brown.

Brown finished 17 of 26 from the field on a night the Celtics played without leading scorer Jayson Tatum due to a sore left ankle. Boston lost for only the second time in its last 10 games and was coming off a 118-101 home win over the Pacers on Saturday. 

The Celtics did hold a 74-63 lead early in the third quarter before Indiana put forth a 17-6 run to tie the game and later take a slim 103-101 edge into the fourth.

The game remained tight up until the very end, when Mathurin was fouled by Kristaps Porzingis on a 3-point try with 0.6 seconds on the clock. He made the first two free throws before deliberately missing the third and leaving the Celtics with not enough time to get a good shot off.

Fast start helps Jazz extend Bucks' slump

The Pacers closed the gap on first-place Milwaukee in the Central Division after the struggling Bucks were handed a 132-116 defeat by the visiting Utah Jazz.

Five Jazz players had at least 19 points and Utah led from nearly start-to-finish to deal Milwaukee a fourth loss in five games. The Bucks' lead over Indiana and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Central is now down to 3 1/2 games.

Utah hit 11 3-pointers in the first quarter to take a 41-23 lead after 12 minutes, then shot 54.2 per cent in the second to build a commanding 77-46 half-time advantage. John Collins and Jordan Clarkson led the Jazz with 12 first-half points.

Clarkson and Lauri Markkanen each finished with 21 points for Utah, which had its lead reduced to seven points midway through the fourth quarter before pulling away again late.

closing out the road trip with a W#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/ZMQC3s3CkP

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) January 9, 2024

Collins, Collin Sexton and Keyonte George all had 19 points in the Jazz's eighth win in 10 games, while Kris Dunn dished out 13 assists.

Milwaukee did get a 25-point, 10-rebound, 11-assist triple-double from Giannis Antetokounmpo on a night in which it played without fellow star Damian Lillard, who was away from the team due to a personal matter. 

Clippers down Suns again with 27-point rout

Paul George led a balanced Los Angeles attack with 25 points as the Clippers cruised to a 138-111 victory over the Phoenix Suns, their second win over their Pacific Division rivals in five days.

All five Los Angeles players scored in double figures as the division-leading Clippers won for the sixth time in seven games. That includes a 131-122 triumph in Phoenix on Wednesday.

George and James Harden each had 15 first-half points to help stake the Clippers to a 71-63 lead at intermission. Los Angeles owned a 101-91 advantage after three quarters before outscoring Phoenix by a 37-20 margin in the fourth to dispel any comeback hopes.

Harden finished with 19 points and 10 assists and Ivica Zubac also had 19 points for Los Angeles.

Kevin Durant, playing a second straight night after returning from a three-game absence caused by a hamstring injury, led the Suns with 30 points in 35 minutes.

Phoenix was dealt a second consecutive loss and dropped to 19-18 during a season it entered among the favourites to win the NBA title.