Deprived of Kelly Oubre Jr. and Nicolas Batum, the Sixers failed to go the distance, the day after their epic fight against the Pacers. Opposite, the Celtics presented themselves without two of their starters, Jaylen Brown (illness) and Kristaps Porzingis (knee). But like Indiana the day before, Joe Mazzulla’s troops were keen to redeem themselves a few days after losing on the same floor. And after a tough battle, they succeeded in dethroning Philadelphia from first place in the Eastern Conference.
More or less, the scenario was the same as the day before with the visitors who very quickly took control of the match, and the locals who had to chase the score following a 10-0 fueled by the pair Pritchard- Mykhailiuk 3-pointer and a dunk from Jrue Holiday, then a 7-0 marked this time by Derrick White’s 3-pointer (22-37).
After a good passage from the Springer-Maxey rear pair, Philly managed to hang on with a 10-0 in turn, while Joel Embiid was still on the bench (42-47)! In the process, De’Anthony Melton’s 3-pointer and Tobias Harris’ two baskets, including a 2+1, allowed the locals to take the lead before the break (53-52).
Philadelphia still in the game
The euphoria did not last long since the Celtics very quickly regained their control of the game after returning from the locker room, with a particularly sharp 3-pointer to swing the game once again.
Jayson Tatum opened the ball, then imitated by Al Horford who distinguished himself three times before shifting Sam Hauser for another long distance basket (71-75)! JT and Jrue Holiday then completed the score to increase the gap to +8 12 minutes from time (75-83).
Like the day before, Philadelphia held on and got closer to its evening opponent again, notably thanks to the efforts of Paul Reed, the two 3-point baskets from De’Anthony Melton and that of Tyrese Maxey to return to -1 (96-97). And Boston ended up finding the thread, with an interception on Joel Embiid and a basket in transition signed Jayson Tatum, a counter from Al Horford on Tyrese Maxey followed by a ball well released from the inside on the following action for Derrick White’s 3-pointer at the head of the racket (98-105).
The Sixers had just taken a good blow to the head, and were finished off in stride, when the Tatum-Horford pair scored two final baskets behind the arc to seal the suspense (105-113). Winners 117-107, the Celtics are the new leaders in the East this morning.
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
– Tyrese Maxey not varnished. Author of 50 points on Sunday, Tyrese Maxey continued with a “back-to-back” that was frustrating to say the least, between the defeat the day before against a fiery Tyrese Haliburton, and his more infuriating performance last night against the Sixers, symbolized by two actions. A first where he complained about non-whistled contacts at the wrist, obviously a little too vehemently with the referees since he received his very first technical foul in his career. Then at the very end of the match, when the score was 105-113 and he had just landed three shots to bring his team to -5 on a fault from Jrue Holiday. The slow motion clearly shows Jrue Holiday’s hand touching that of Tyrese Maxey, but the challenge requested by the Celtics in the process was finally granted, which ended the suspense, Jayson Tatum having increased the gap to +10 in the stride.
– Hello from the elders. In the absence of the Brown-Porzingis tandem, Boston had to close ranks and rely on other individuals to get rid of Philly. This notably resulted in the application and rigor of the entire capable squad who knew how to take care of the ball and only lost 9 balls. But also players who have been able to raise their level, at the forefront of which we find the two former players of the house, Jrue Holiday and Al Horford. Jrue Holiday was a reliable and constant benchmark during the game and came away with 18 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocks! Al Horford, for his part, was exceptional as a starting pivot at the age of 37 with 14 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 5 blocks!
– Derrick White, king of the fourth quarter. If we had to name only one X factor for this meeting, it would perhaps be him! True to form, Derrick White was valuable from start to finish for the Celtics, with special mention for his thunderous fourth quarter, during which he scored 14 of his 27 points. It was he who scored the first four points of the period for his team, before finishing to disgust the Sixers with two devastating 3-point baskets, at times when the locals were pushing to come back.
How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
