Indiana Pacers vs. Boston Celtics prediction: Who will win Game 4 in NBA playoffs?

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Pacers have reached insurmountable territory. No NBA team has ever fallen behind 3-0 in a playoff series and come back to win it. Precious few have even been able to force a Game 7.

The Pacers could easily be up 2-1, having lost two games by a combined score of eight points with late leads in each. But it didn't work out for them against the NBA's best team all season in the Boston Celtics and now reaching the NBA Finals means doing what has, to date, proven impossible.

Still, the Pacers have to play on and their first goal is to find a way to make sure the Celtics don't celebrate a trip to the NBA Finals on the Gainbridge Fieldhouse floor. The Pacers' playoff run has been far more successful than many imagined when it began, but they'd rather not see it end in a sweep.

Doyel: The 2024 Pacers are ahead of schedule, making them just good enough to break your heart.

Here is our prediction for Game 4 at 8 p.m. Monday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

Dustin Dopirak, Pacers beat writer: It's hard to imagine the Pacers becoming the first team to overcome a 3-0 series deficit with four straight wins. They've only won four or more games in a row once all season, and winning six straight in the regular season -- even if those games did include a win over the Knicks and two over the Bucks -- is not the same as beating the Celtics four times including twice in Boston.

But I take the Pacers at their word that they're motivated to just get one win, to make sure there's not a trophy celebration at Gainbridge Fieldhouse and that they at least get to go back to Boston one more time. I think the Celtics put it away there, but after the way they performed with Haliburton out on Saturday, I think they have enough firepower left in them to win one more game. Their season likely ends in Boston on Wednesday, but it says here it continues Monday night. Pacers 122, Celtics 113.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Pacers vs. Celtics game prediction for Game 4 of NBA playoff series