PORTLAND, Maine — The Maine Celtics make their return to playoff action Wednesday for the first time in six years. The Celtics host the Cleveland Charge at 2 p.m. on Wednesday at the Portland Expo.
"This group has been resilient, just finding ways to win," head coach Alex Barlow said.
The Celtics finished with 19-13 record on the season, earning the 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
"We've had supreme confidence this whole season that this team would be a really good team, and we've had great moments this year," guard Scottie Lindsey said.
The Celtics took down the charge in the team's last meeting in February 116-105.
The G League playoffs are a single elimination format through the first three rounds. The G League Finals are played in a three-game series.
"I know our ceiling is very high, and that gives me a lot of confidence, especially in a one-game playoff series. If we get hot, especially with how many threes we shoot, if we get hot for one game we can blow teams out," Barlow said. "Vice-versa if we're cold. We've got to find another way to win. But knowing it's a one-game series, I think our ceiling is very high."
If the Celtics defeat the Charge in round 1, they'll move on to face #1 seed Long Island Nets on Friday. The winner of that game would advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.
"Persistence, hard-nosed, and they understand what they're playing for," Maine Celtics President DuJuan Eubanks said. "I think everyone understands that this is a franchise that's been around since 2009, and the community deserves something like this because of the way they pack the house night in and night out for us."
The Maine Celtics are hopeful that fans can keep bringing the energy they have all season.
"I've loved playing at the expo. The fans here, the fan experience has been pretty much like no other team I've played for in the G League," Lindsey said.
"Guys that have played overseas, have played in the G League in other places, talk about just how many fans we get here, how loud they are, how passionate they are about Maine Celtics basketball," Barlow said.
Tickets are still available for the Celtics postseason matchup on Wednesday. The game will also air live on ESPN 2.