Everything you need to know about the Sixers’ 89-80 win over the Celtics in quickie form.
HEADLINES
Offense collapses without Kyrie: With Kyrie Irving sitting out with a sore left shoulder, the Celtics offense delivered its worst performance of the season, scoring a season-low 80 points in the defeat. The Celtics floundered in all areas on offense, failing to shoot well (40 percent from field), turning the ball over endlessly (season-high 19 turnovers) and showing a lack of aggressiveness towards the basket (no free-throw attempts until third quarter) that produced a meager output of 53 points through three quarters. The Celtics made things respectable late with a 27-point fourth quarter, but a 21-point lead built by the Sixers early was too much to overcome.
Joel Embiid looks like his star self: The All-Star center was kept at bay for the two of the Celtics-Sixers matchups this season (he sat out the other) thanks to some strong interior defense by the Celtics and off shooting nights by the big man. On Thursday night, the tide turned. Embiid’s jumper was falling from the midrange and that forced Celtics into double teaming him throughout the second half that Embiid took over (scoring 18 of a game-high 26 points). His passing out of those double teams (team-high six assists) helped the Sixers put the game out of reach as the team found the open man regularly.
TURNING POINT
Despite their offensive struggles, the Celtics remaining within striking distance for much of the third quarter. However, reserve point guard T.J. McConnell and Embiid got the Sixers on a roll to close out the frame, using a 15-7 run to push the visitors’ lead to 18 entering the fourth quarter. The Celtics got no closer than eight points the rest of the way.
TWO UP
Joel Embiid:
The seven-footer put on a show in the second half, scoring 18 of his 26 points after intermission with a host of impressive moves in the post. He led the Sixers team in points, rebounds (16), assists (six), blocks (two) as his offensive rhythm forced the Celtics to throw a constant stream of double teams at him throughout the fourth quarter, a rarity for Brad Stevens’ coached teams.
No one on the Celtics:
There were a few sequences of positive play from members of this roster, but no one really put together a complete game on either end for the hosts. Whether it was poor shooting, turnovers or lackluster defense, Stevens got an underwhelming performance from nearly everyone on the roster.
TWO DOWN
Celtics’ 3-point shooting:
The Celtics couldn’t get anything going in the interior against a massive Sixers front line, but they were just as poor from the perimeter, knocking down just 24.1 percent of their 29 attempts from beyond the arc.
The game of basketball in the second quarter:
The two teams combined for 18 turnovers and just 31 points over the 12 minutes of action. For the first six minutes of the frame, the Celtics could barely get a shot up during their half-court offense, thanks to a barrage of miscues. The Sixers’ miscues were more spread out over the entire period, but the two teams combined to create a game that resembled ugly high school basketball during the frame.
TOP PLAY
TWO TAKES B-ROBB WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER
Kyrie Irving improved his MVP case tonight:
The Celtics were going up against a top-six NBA defense in Philadelphia and the Sixers made the hosts look like a middle school team on offense for the better part of the first three quarters. Without Irving to run the offense, the Sixers clogged the paint with their length and also recovered well to the three-point line. The C’s passed into trouble (19 turnovers), couldn’t hit an open jumper and most importantly couldn’t create good looks for themselves on any part of the floor. The Celtics could obviously use some offensive upgrades to some sections of the roster, but there was no better example of Irving’s impact on spacing than this defeat.
The Sixers are going to be a defensive force for years to come:
Embiid is a tremendous defensive anchor in the middle, but there’s elite defensive talent all of the roster with this group. With J.J. Redick out, the Sixers had solid defenders at pretty much every position with length. They recovered well to the perimeter to contest jumpers, they used their length to cut off passing lanes (10 steals), and nearly every important piece of their core is age 23 or under. This is a group that’s going to be a pesky rival for years to come in the East for the C’s.
