BOSTON — James Harden didn’t want the Philadelphia 76ers getting too far ahead of themselves after stealing Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on the home floor of the Boston Celtics.
And after another win at TD Garden in a much more pivotal Game 5 on Tuesday night, this one in more resounding fashion with a 115-103 verdict, Harden had a similar message for his teammates with Philadelphia now holding onto a 3-2 series lead and having a chance to eliminate the Celtics from the playoffs Thursday.
“We just got to go handle business. Like we control our own destiny,” said Harden, who totaled 17 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds in the victory. “Like I said before, don’t think too much of it. Just go out there and play our brand of basketball and do what we know we what to do, what we’re capable of. That’s easy. It’s simple.”
Joel Embiid sung a similar tune to his star running mate after putting together a monster showing, scoring 33 points and punctuating his stellar effort with a game-sealing chase-down block on Celtics star Jaylen Brown.
Like Harden, Embiid understands there is nothing for the 76ers to celebrate just yet as they look to advance to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2001.
“We still got to get one more win,” Embiid said. “That’s all I’m thinking about right now. And then obviously, you’re going home, so we’re going to have a lot of energy from the crowd. I would imagine everybody plays better at home, too. I do play better at home. Like I said, what we did tonight is easier said than done, but you got to do it again. I’m excited for it.”
76ers head coach Doc Rivers is in lockstep with his team’s dynamic duo and is preparing for the Celtics to bring plenty of fight, which is something they didn’t do in Game 5, as Boston looks to stave off elimination at Wells Fargo Center.
“You can say it but you still got to do it,” Rivers said. “We’re up 3-2, that’s it. That’s it. We have to get our rest and we have to get ready because they’re going to play great. We got to be to sustain that and still win the game.”
