Boston Celtics vs Indiana Pacers Final Score & Over/Under Result — Jan 12, 2026

Payton Pritchard's 23 points and 8 assists powered Boston's offensive rhythm, but it wasn't enough to push this defensive slog over a sky-high market total of 227.5. Indiana's 98-96 victory came on a night when both teams' defenses collapsed in the second quarter—combining for 66 points—then clamped down hard, holding the combined score to just 38 in the fourth. DAGGER leaned under, and it cashed decisively.

The Celtics built early momentum with Pritchard's creation and Derrick White's steady 18 points and 5 assists, while the Pacers' Pascal Siakam (21 pts, 8 reb, 6 ast) and Jay Huff (20 pts) kept pace. But the second half told the real story: after the explosive 109-point first half, Boston and Indiana combined for only 85 points across 24 minutes. The third quarter yielded just 47 combined, and the fourth quarter devolved into a grind, producing only 38. Indiana's Andrew Nembhard orchestrated the win with 13 points and 9 assists, orchestrating a defensive tightening that Boston—fresh off a 140-122 shootout with the Pacers less than a week earlier—couldn't breach.

The 194 final total landed 33.5 points below the overweight number, a massive miss driven by a second-half defensive reversal that neither team's recent form—Boston averaging 119.1 points per game, Indiana allowing 122.0—suggested was coming.