The Boston Celtics dominated the Philadelphia 76ers 123-91 in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series.
Since the Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Celtics in a Game 7 at the old Boston Garden in 1982, the two teams have met six times in the playoffs. On all six occasions, Boston has advanced past Philadelphia. While some nuances could be discussed after the Celtics' dominant performance in Game 1, overcoming this trend will require a massive shift from the Sixers.
Jaylen Brown described Sunday's 123-91 win as classic Celtics basketball, emphasizing their relentless play. That was Celtics basketball, Brown said after the victory. We've been a hard-playing team all year, that can't change now that the playoffs have started. But then it's just focusing in, honing in on the details and just winning the fight. Being the harder-playing team and just guarding. Brown added that strong defense, not offense, will decide this series. Our offense can't win us this series. I mean, our offense is important, but we got to make sure we guard. And I think tonight, we did a great job.
Boston controlled the game from start to finish, with Jayson Tatum leading the way. Tatum finished with 25 points on 9-for-17 shooting, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists in 32 minutes. Sunday's game marked another strong step in Tatum's return from a torn Achilles tendon, which he suffered last season. He made his season debut against the Dallas Mavericks on March 6 and slowly increased his minutes in the final weeks of the regular season. Tatum spoke about his recovery journey, saying It's part of the process. It will forever be a part of my story and obviously it's still fresh. Forty eight weeks (since the injury) this past Tuesday so no, I don't get sick of it. I understand the magnitude of the injury and the narrative around me coming back and everything in between. I'm proud of what I've been able to accomplish and return to play and all those things. There were many days where I wasn't even sure I was going to play this season, let alone get a chance to play today, so I'm overly just kind of grateful that I'm in this position right now.
The 76ers were overwhelmed in every facet of the game, shooting just 4-for-23 from three in the first half and 4-for-23 for the entire contest. Boston created a 22-3 advantage in points off turnovers, exposing Philadelphia's lack of cohesion. Tyrese Maxey, who finished with 21 points on 8-for-21 shooting and 8 assists, admitted the team's defensive breakdowns cost them. The weird part about it is we kind of got some good looks, Maxey said. We just missed wide open 3s. But the defense, we had a lot of defensive breakdowns, a lot of stuff that we went over, that can't happen.
Joel Embiid, who underwent an emergency appendectomy on April 9, continues to recover and remains out indefinitely. He made his first appearance around the team since the surgery on Wednesday, sitting on the bench during Philadelphia's 109-97 victory over the Orlando Magic in the 7-8 play-in game. Embiid stayed in Philadelphia on Sunday to continue his recovery.
The Sixers' best chance to extend the series hinges on Embiid's potential return. To keep the series competitive, Philadelphia must improve its shooting, particularly from three-point range. The team also needs Maxey and other scorers to perform at a higher level to match the Celtics' intensity. Coach Nick Nurse acknowledged the team's struggles but noted brief stretches of improvement. A lot went wrong, that's for sure, Nurse said. I thought from the second quarter to about midway through the third, we finally got ourselves underneath us a little bit, and played pretty good basketball. But the minutes around that was absolutely unacceptable.
Boston now holds a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series and aims to carry its momentum into Game 2. Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla stressed the importance of maintaining the same level of performance despite the comfortable win. We have to have an understanding of -- I thought we got off to a good start in the series, and two, it really doesn't matter anymore, because in 48 hours, we have to do it again, and you expect a better version of both, Mazzulla said. We have to expect a better version of both our opponent and ourselves.