The shorthanded Celtics welcomed the 76ers back to TD Garden on Monday while missing eight players including four impactful pieces, and Philadelphia was able to capitalize on it, pulling out a 108-103 win down the stretch.
Both teams entered with identical 15-15 records. Boston fell to 15-16 while Philadelphia improved to 16-15.
Check out the full box score here.
ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
The Celtics were able to hold Joel Embiid to 3-for-17 from the field just three weeks ago in Boston’s one-point win. But back at TD Garden with the Celtics missing three of their most impactful front court contributors — Al Horford, Robert Williams and Grant Williams — Embiid had his way with Enes Kanter inside.
Embiid finished with a game-high 41 points on 14-for-27 from the field. Nine of those 41 points came in the final 1:22 of regulation. He added 10 rebounds and five assists in 40 minutes to go along with it. And while it was the Celtics who held the advantage in both points in the paint (46-22) and total rebounds (42-34), it was Embiid who proved too much to handle for the shorthanded Celtics.
STARS OF THE GAME
— Jaylen Brown led the Celtics offensively with 30 points on 9-for-22 from the field. Brown added four assists, five rebounds and two steals.
— Philadelphia’s Seth Curry was crucial for the 76ers early on. He finished with 26 points (18 in first half) on 10-for-14 from the field including a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc.
— Payton Pritchard proved the Celtics with a fourth-quarter spark they failed to capitalize on. Pritchard, playing a larger role with eight players sidelined, scored 14 points off the bench on 6-for-9 from the field in 22 minutes. It was more than double Pritchard’s usual minutes.
WAGER WATCH
With so many absences, bettors probably thought it meant more of an opportunity for Brown and Jayson Tatum, and perhaps some placed a wager depicting that. Well, let’s hope you went with Brown as he hit the Over 20.5 on his point prop while Tatum (17 points, nine rebounds, six assists) failed to beat his individual total of 28.5. A $110 bet on Brown, which felt more than gettable before the tip, would have paid out $210, according to DraftKings Sportsbook.
UP NEXT
The Celtics are set to return to TD Garden and host the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday.
