The Boston Celtics suffered a shocking 98-96 loss against the Indiana Pacers on the back of a game-winning shot by Pascal Siakam on Monday night. Although this win is monumental for the Pacers, who now find themselves on a three-game winning streak, Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla had some thoughts on the result.
During his post-game media availability, Joe Mazzulla appeared heated with the events leading up to Indiana’s victory. When asked about Pascal Siakam’s game-winning drive, Mazzulla shared a two-word reaction.
“Illegal screen.”
Although the reporter asked him a series of questions about the plays in the final frame, Mazzulla kept repeating the same phrase, highlighting his displeasure with the missed call in the clutch situation.
With the game tied at 96-96, the Pacers had the ball with less than 20 seconds left on the clock. Mazzulla’s point of contention was concerning a screen set by Siakam on Derrick White at the top of the key.
In an attempt to force a turnover from Andrew Nembhard, White closed the gap between himself and the Pacers’ guard. At this point, Siakam attempted to force a mismatch by having White switch onto him by setting a screen, but after some questionable contact, White went down, leaving Siakam wide open.
Although Siakam didn’t utilize this opportunity to knock down a shot, the mismatch allowed him to get a better look at the rim after backing White down into the paint. An eventual step-through floater over Neemias Queta sealed the victory for Indiana.
Joe Mazzulla, in response to all six postgame media questions: “Illegal screen.”
Here’s Indiana’s final bucket, where Pascal Siakam set a screen behind Derrick White, then backed him down in the paint for the game-sealing floater: pic.twitter.com/YlEVGFaRpl
— Gio Rivera (@GioJRivera) January 13, 2026
Needless to say, Boston’s problems with officiating appear to be stacking up. Unfortunately, the result remains unchanged.
The loss will hurt the Celtics, who were playing without their star player, Jaylen Brown, as he was sidelined with back spasms on Monday night. With Brown out of the rotation, Boston’s offensive production seemingly came to a standstill.
Payton Pritchard led Boston’s scoring with 23 points, while Derrick White contributed with 18. Aside from four players who notched double-digit scoring, the production from the rest of the roster was quite underwhelming.
The loss to the Pacers can also be attributed to the Celtics’ abysmal shooting night from beyond the arc. Having shot 9-35 from three-point range (roughly 26%), Boston put itself in a poor position to compete.
Despite the loss, the Celtics still boast a solid 24-15 record, holding onto third place in the East. However, having lost two consecutive games, Boston will need to make adjustments to prevent the buildup of negative momentum.
