Al Horford scored a season-high 20 points, Derrick White had 21, and the Celtics executed down the stretch to pull away from an Embiid and Maxey-less 76ers team.
When ESPN first scheduled the 76ers-Celtics game for a Friday night national TV matchup, the network likely envisioned a showdown between several of the league’s brightest stars — Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Kristaps Porzingis.
But, by the end of the game, Brown was the only player of those five on the court. Shortly before tipoff, Embiid and Maxey were ruled out with an illness, setting the stage for exactly the kind of lopsided game the Celtics have historically struggled with.
Then, with just one second left in the third quarter, Tatum was ejected after getting his second technical foul of the night. Tatum turned the ball over and then fouled his defender, Robert Covington. Tatum was ejected for arguing the call, which was ultimately upgraded to a Flagrant 1, resulting in three Philadelphia points and the loss of the Celtics’ top scorer.
Jayson Tatum ejected vs. Sixers pic.twitter.com/1XdMBmJ8uA
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) December 2, 2023
Celtics convert in the clutch
The Celtics trailed by 1 with just over two minutes to play when Horford nailed a post-up more reminiscent of 2012 Al. Then, Brown hit a pair of free throws, and Jrue Holiday drew a charge on Covington and subsequently converted on a pair of free throws to give the Celtics a 5-point lead with a minute to go.
Patrick Beverly, starting in place of Maxey, scored a career-high 26 points on 10/15 shooting, but missed a three-pointer on the following possession that would have cut the lead to two. Holiday then found a cutting Pritchard for an open layup, effectively putting the game out of reach.
It wasn’t the best 48 minutes of Celtics basketball, but the Celtics improve to a league-best 15-4 record with their second consecutive win over Philadelphia.
The first quarter was a high-scoring affair; the Celtics turned the ball over 7 times and played lackluster defense, but led by 8 at the end. In the second quarter, the 76ers largely out-hustled the Celtics, and outscored them 36-25. At halftime, the 76ers role players were leading the way. Beverly scored 16 points (7/8 FG), while De’Anthony Melton scored 16 points (and finished with 21 on the night).
Tatum and Brown both had sloppy first halves; Tatum scored 15 but turned the ball over 5 times, while Brown shot 4-10 from the field and had 3 turnovers.
The Celtics started the third quarter on an 11-5 run and more defensive intensity; after allowing 36 points in each of the first two quarters, they held the 76ers to 25 third quarter points. But the quarter was capped by the Tatum ejection, and the Cs trailed by two heading into the final period.
Al Horford had another monster game, finishing with 20 points on 7/9 shooting to go along with 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, and a steal.
“It was one of those really, really hard games,” Horford said. “That’s just the way it is sometimes.”
With Porzingis out for a third consecutive game, Neemias Queta was the first big off the bench in the first half and played six energetic minutes, though he struggled in the pick-and-roll defense. In the second half, Luke Kornet served as the first big off the bench, but Queta started the fourth quarter.
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