Kyrie Irving knew that he and his teammates would need a heightened sense of intensity on the defensive end the floor in their first-round series against the Indiana Pacers.

Irving led the charge for the Celtics in their 84-74 Game 1 victory. In 34 minutes of action, the former Duke Blue Devil racked up 20 points on 6-of-17 shooting from the field (2-of-5 from beyond the arc), seven assists, five rebounds, and two steals.

During his post-game media availability, Irving admitted that there were a few lapses on the offensive end of the floor. On defense, however, he knew that Boston's length would cause problems for Indiana.

Via Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports:

“I expected [the defensive intensity],” said Irving, who dove on the floor chasing a steal in the third quarter, showcasing his own Smart-like grit at a time when Boston was taking control of the game. “I just think that just on the offensive end there were going to be some things that were going to happen. But, defensively, I knew that our length, our versatility were going to be a positive for us, especially in this series.”

Later Irving added, “Defensively, I think we’re going to be in the right spots. It’s just matching that effort and being smart about it.”

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The Celtics really clamped down on defense in Game 1. Their primary focus was limiting Bojan Bogdanovic's open looks — a goal that was met in a big way. With Jaylen Brown hounding him most of the night, Bogdanovic was only able to muster 12 points on 4-of-11 shooting (0-for-3 from downtown).

Celtics head coach Brad Stevens respects the Pacers, but he's keeping his foot on the proverbial gas pedal.

“This is not a series for the timid, we’ve known that going in,” Stevens said. “This is a heck of a team with a heck of a coach and the minute you let your foot off the gas or you don’t play the right way you’re going to get beat.”

The Celtics and Pacers will meet for Game 2 on Wednesday night. Tip-off inside TD Garden is set for 7:00 p.m. ET, with TNT having live broadcast coverage.