In the second consecutive game versus the Boston Celtics, the Philadelphia 76ers looked to capitalize on Jayson Tatum missing another night of action.
At the start of the first quarter, Joel Embiid was aggressive on offense. He scored at will and had a nice hesitation, baseline move for a dunk. Another Philadelphia 76ers player who came out with a scorer’s mentality was Seth Curry. He hit his first three shots from the field and had a nice assist to Ben Simmons for a dunk. Another Philly player with a solid quarter was Tobias Harris, who scored in a variety of ways.
Boston had trouble again guarding Embiid in the post. What they lacked on defense to thwart the 76ers’ All-Star center, Boston scorched Philly from deep. Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, and Kemba Walker helped the Celtics shoot 7-for-16 from the 3-point line in the first half. They also drove the lane unimpeded as Embiid was reluctant to contest shots in fear of picking up more fouls.
Other noteworthy Sixer first half performances were Ben Simmons’ defense and Dwight Howard’s strong rebounding.
Down by only three points going into the third quarter, the Sixers would look to come out swinging.
The Sixers came out with two quick threes from Embiid and Harris. Seth Curry also joined in on the shooting spree, hitting a layup and a jumper. Still though, Boston stayed hot. Smart and Brown set the tone on offense, scoring at will and abusing the paint due to Embiid’s foul woes.
In the third, Harris eventually came alive after Embiid took most of the shots on offense. Harris gave Sixer fans a nice defensive highlight where he shut his man down and recorded a nice block to start a fast break that led to a Curry 3-pointer.
The bench finally came through and redeemed itself from a poor first half. Matisse Thybulle, Shake Milton, and Furkan Korkmaz hit big shots in the quarter to maintain a nice lead against the Celtics. Howard made his contributions through defense and timely rebounds. By the end of the third, Philly had a double digit lead.
Thybulle, who struggled early with his shot, started the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer. The offense sputtered after that, as Embiid stayed on the bench with three fouls. Philly’s dominant big man reentered the game and settled the offense by drawing fouls and hitting a long jumper. Then, Boston made a run.
After Embiid threw an errant pass for a turnover and Boston score, Marcus Smart hit a floater in the lane, causing Doc Rivers to call a timeout. The lead dwindled to five, and Philly had to dig deep to fend off the Celtics.
The defense on both teams tightened, and each possession became more valuable. Then, after a quiet game, Ben Simmons erupted. Hitting the glass and driving strong, he gave the Sixers some needed points. As Boston pushed for a late run, there was Simmons with a steal and dunk to grant the 76ers a cushion with four minutes remaining. A subsequent assist to Harris for three, and multiple scores in the paint, gave Simmons retribution for several previous subpar games. No doubt about it – the fourth quarter belonged to Ben Simmons.
The icing on the cake was a Joel Embiid 3-pointer with the shot clock running down to give the 76ers another solid win against Boston.