The Boston Celtics had a tough day at the office on Christmas Day.
The Celtics committed 12 turnovers to the 76ers’ six as Philadelphia won 118-114 at TD Garden
Despite outrebounding Philadelphia 51-39 and shooting 40.8% (20-of-49) from 3, Boston got to the free-throw line just 13 times, making eight, and struggled to contain Tyrese Maxey, who finished with 33 points on 12-of-23 shooting and had 12 assists and three steals.
Joel Embiid had 27 points (8-of-15 shooting) and nine rebounds in 30 minutes, and Caleb Martin had 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting (7-of-9 from 3) for the 76ers, who were 10.5-point underdogs at BetMGM.
Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum combined for eight turnovers as the Celtics just couldn’t find their rhythm, and the dynamic duo went long stretches without having a great impact. The pair combined for 55 points, 22 rebounds and eight assists but were definitely missing the contributions of Jrue Holiday, who was out with a shoulder injury.
The Celtics did post an 11-0 run over a two-minute span that cut the 76ers’ lead to 108-105 with 2:25 left after some sloppy play from Philadelphia. But the 76ers hung on and hit their free throws to put the game away.
Wemby puts on a show
All the talk before the Christmas Day leadoff game was Victor Wembanyama taking Manhattan.
And the second-year sensation certainly delivered.
Wembanyama scored 42 points to come close to breaking the Christmas Day debut scoring record of 45 set by a rookie Wilt Chamberlain in 1959, but the Knicks persevered down the stretch to win 117-114 on Wednesday.
Mikal Bridges had his best game of the season, scoring 41 on 17-of-25 shooting with six 3s to power the Knicks, and Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns combined for 41 points.
Wembanyama added 18 rebounds, four assists and four blocks for San Antonio.
The Knicks, who were 9.5-point favorites at BetMGM, improved to 20-10, while San Antonio dropped to 15-15.
Tatum and Brown established themselves in spurts earlier in the game, but have taken major chunks of actual game time off. Can’t afford to have either become bystanders.
Make that 20 points now for Caleb Martin. On just 10 shots.
Sixers up by 15 in what is unquestionably their best game of the season.
Caleb Martin, who has struggled with injuries and inconsistent shooting this season, has 14 points on eight shots.
Been a tremendous release valve for the Sixers tonight.
Don’t think the Celtics figured they’d be in a late-game dog fight with the Sixers, but that underscores just how much health factors into a team’s overall level.
The Sixers, playing with all of Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George, are tied 82-82 with the Celtics as they head into the final frame.
Celtics are forcing Embiid into so many terrible shots, the catches are so far from the hoop and he’s rarely been able to operate from the nail
Tatum cans his fourth triple, and the Celtics score the first seven points of the second half.
Jaylen Brown is attempting to find his rhythm, but is just 3-11 from the field with four turnovers.
76ers lead at the half
Halftime in Boston.
Sixers up 66-58.
Embiid with 18 points, and six rebounds. Maxey also with 18 points, and 8 assists.
Jayson Tatum finally came alive late, finishing the first half with 16 points and three made triples.
Jaylen Brown and Payton Pritchard have both struggled. A combined 2-of-14 shooting.
This is, by far, the best we’ve seen the Sixers this season.
Ball is moving, defense on a string, excellent shot-profile, and top-tier individual execution by Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey.
Boston have some adjustments to make for the second half.
It’s unfair to say the Celtics rely on the three too much, especially as the long ball helped them win a championship last season, but there are games where they flat-out need to generate more paint touches.
This, it appears, is one of those games.
Strong first quarter from Philly, who lead the Celtics 30-25.
Sloppy ball-handling by Boston, who has committed 6 turnovers.
Boston does have seven made triples, but needs to mix it up in the second quarter. Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum have not gotten downhill a ton.
