”How worried are you about the lack of bench scoring so far this season?” Abby Chin asked Celtics Head Coach Joe Mazzulla before the game.

“Zero”

No matter what Mazzulla thought about scoring from the bench, the starting group was the one who scored first. The Celtics start made three straight threes after giving up a layup to Benedict Mathurin. Derrick White, Jayson Tatum, and Jrue Holiday were all part of the fun. Two slam dunks by Porzingis and Brown-capped a 14-0 run for the party before the Pacers finally remembered how to put the ball in the basket. The Celtics quickly went ahead 20–10.

Even though they didn’t have Tyrese Haliburton, the Pacers weren’t going to take it lying down. They were especially well-equipped, with Bruce Brown, a Boston native who often kills Celtics and usually shows up for his Dorchester family when he comes to town. Aaron Nesmith, who was moved from Boston to the Pacers in the Malcolm Brogdon deal last summer and just got a nice extension from them, wasn’t either. Nesmith made an and-one early on and started his payback game by pounding his chest very hard.

And while the Pacers did finally get into a rhythm on offense, the Celtics’ attack was too strong for them to handle, and their defense ended up being a complete mess. Tatum and White got really hot near the end of the first quarter. The Celtics led 44–27 at the end of the first quarter, hitting an amazing 76 percent from the field.

The second quarter saw the C’s start their defense with a “soft press.” This is a strategy they’ve been using a lot to keep the pressure on opponents who are falling apart and to keep their own minds on the game. Even though it’s still early in the season, this team seems set on beating people night in and night out.

When teams like the Wizards and Pacers play the Celtics like the Harlem Globetrotters, it really stands out on TV. These teams don’t have nearly enough skill to guard all five Celtics starters at once. The Washington Genera…whether Tatum is beating up T.J. McConnell or Porzingis is throwing pocket passes to Brown, I mean that the Indiana Pacers didn’t look like they could keep up for most of the night.The Celtics’ defense is still held together by White and Holiday in the backcourt, which is starting to feel unfair to other teams. Early on, they set an infectious tone. White blocked Mathurin’s try at a reverse dunk in one of the sickest ways ever. Since the judges had already called an offensive foul, it didn’t really matter. For fun’s sake, we’re going to forget about that.

But what about those minutes on the bench that Abby Chin was so worried about? Aside from Al Horford, who the Celtics’ promotional towels say should be the sixth starter, the bench boys scored a respectable nine of the team’s 75 points, which helped the Celtics build a 21-point lead at halfway. Oshae Brissett played with a lot of energy, and Hauser made some tough shots. That was against real, starting-caliber opponents, but Bus One action during trash time was pretty exciting.

With a full quarter to work with, the bench scored an amazing 63 points. Hauser went crazy from downtown, and Dalano Banton and Lamar Stevens beat guys off the dribble like you’ve never seen before. It was beautiful.

Aside from talking about how great the team is, Celtics talk has mostly been about how the bench is doing lately. There is no such thing as a free game, but the Celtics shouldn’t have to worry about the Wizards and Pacers without Halliburton. That being said, Payton Pritchard, who was recently extended, played 25 minutes against the Wizards on Monday but scored no points. This made people wonder if the Celtics’ bench can help the players in games against weaker teams.

This does not take into account, though, that rotation pieces are expected and told to support the team’s main scoring choices. There are almost too many great or top scorers for the Celtics to count. There’s not much reason for guys like Pritchard, Hauser, and Brissett to throw shots most of the time, except during trash time. If the Celtics can beat every team in three quarters, that shouldn’t be a problem. The only thing that might be a problem is playing the stars for too long.

To pick up where they left off at the beginning of the second half, the Celtics picked up the Pacers and drove them onto the floor. The lead grew to 38 points by the end of the third quarter thanks to persistent defense and completely dominating offense. By the time the starters came out for the night, it felt like everything was going in. The C’s were hitting an absurd 56% from three-point range and 55% from the field.

The Celtics’ starting scored 92 points in less than three quarters, showing that they are still the best team in basketball. After everything was said and done, the Celtics scored 150 points or more for the first time since 1992. They beat the Pacers by an amazing 51 points, which is the third most points in Celtics history. It was even better that all five of them played for less than 30 minutes, which is what you want on nights like these. It’s pretty crazy that Mazzulla has to figure out when to pull the starters in the third quarter. The Celtics will try to keep the pain train going against the Nets on Saturday.