The Boston Celtics soundly defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 124-104. Jayson Tatum had a triple-double, but Payton Pritchard was the scoring leader with 28 points. Paul George led Philadelphia with 17 points. The 76ers were without Eric Gordon, Kyle Lowry, and Justin Edwards, while Xavier Tillman was out for the Celtics. The Boston Celtics improved to 40-16, and the 76ers dropped to 20-35.
The Boston Celtics Hot Start
When these division rivals have matched up, it has always been interesting. Earlier this season, Philadelphia beat the Boston Celtics on Christmas, and a few weeks later, the Celtics completed a 26-point comeback win over the 76ers. This meeting got off to a competitive start. Boston took a six-point lead, but Philadelphia battled back to tie the game 15-15. Both squads went back and forth. The Celtics got three-pointers from Pritchard, Jaylen Brown, and Kristaps Porzingis. Their hot three-point shooting helped them extend their lead, shooting 8-of-12 in the quarter. At the end of the first quarter, the Boston Celtics led 36-28.
Paul George got rolling to start the second quarter. Pritchard responded with three three-pointers. His efforts put the Boston Celtics up by double digits, and Luke Kornet joined with a couple of dunks off Tatum passes. Again, the 76ers fought back with buckets from Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. The Celtics maintained their lead with Tatum and Brown’s scoring. They stayed up by ten for most of the quarter. Then, a pair of three-pointers from Porzingis and Al Horford extended their lead. At halftime, the Boston Celtics led 72-56.
Overall, it was a productive first half for the Boston Celtics. They were shooting 60% from three, and it helped them build a lead. Pritchard was at the forefront, shooting 5-of-7 from three for 15 points. Brown had 13 points, and Tatum had 11 points with seven assists. Boston was moving the ball, and it led to an abundance of three-pointers and assists. The 76ers’ big three was playing well despite the deficit. Maxey had 14 points, Embiid had 13, and George had 12. They were not out of this game, and if their shooting picked up, they could make things interesting.
The Boston Celtics Pull Ahead
In the third quarter, the Boston Celtics got things started with an alley-oop from Tatum to Brown. This fueled the Celtics to push their lead past 20 points. The 76ers were cold from beyond the arc, and while Boston wasn’t shooting as well as in the first half, they were still moving the ball and generating points. Both teams struggled from three, but the Celtics scored elsewhere with Tatum and Pritchard. They went up by as many as 29 points. Through three quarters, the Boston Celtics had a commanding 100-74 lead.
The Celtics held a large lead going into the final quarter but had been on both sides of comebacks this season. The 76ers rode with their bench unit to start the quarter, but Quentin Grimes gave them a spark. George then got an ankle-breaker on Sam Hauser. However, Pritchard and Derrick White kept the Boston Celtics offense afloat. Pritchard stayed hot from beyond the arc, knocking down eight three-pointers. Philadelphia never brought the deficit within 20 in the fourth quarter. The Boston Celtics cruised to a 124-104 victory, winning their seventh consecutive road game.
Final Thoughts
The Boston Celtics improved to 40-16 with the win. Pritchard led with 28 points and eight three-pointers. Tatum had a triple-double with 15 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds. Brown finished with 20 points. This was a big win coming out of the All-Star break, putting the Celtics past the infamous 40/20 rule with the Thunder and Cavaliers.
The 76ers fell to 20-35 with the loss. George led with 17 points. Maxey and Kelly Oubre Jr. each had 16, followed by Embiid with 15. The team shot 20.5% from three on 39 attempts and could not contain the Boston offense, leading to the emphatic defeat.
