Final: Sixers 89, Celtics 80

The Celtics had their worst scoring output of the season without Kyrie Irving (shoulder) on Thursday night, posting a meager 80 points in a ugly 89-80 defeat to the Philadelphia Sixers.

Marcus Morris and Al Horford had a team-high 14 points in the defeat, while Joel Embiid led all players with 26 points and 16 rebounds. It was the second straight loss for the Celtics at home.

Third Quarter Notes

• The turnovers disappeared early in the frame but the struggles for the Celtics continued on offense in the third quarter. Boston managed just seven points in the first six minutes of the quarter, behind some swarming interior defense by Philadelphia and lackluster 3-point shooting (3-of-20).


• Horford with a a couple uncharacteristic mistakes defensively that allowed Dario Saric to get a couple open looks.


• Joel Embiid got comfortable in the post midway through the quarter, with a pair of nice postups on Horford and Morris.


• Celtics didn't get their first free throw attempts of the game until 3:39 remaining in the third quarter.


• T.J. McConnell and Joel Embiid pushed the Sixers lead to 18 in the final three minutes, closing out the frame on a 15-8 run behind some savvy dribble penetration and Embiid's ability in the post to draw doubles/find the open shooter.

• If the first quarter was bad basketball, the second quarter was downright ugly. The Celtics piled up nine turnovers in the frame, the vast majority of them coming in the first six minutes of the frame.


• Nearly the entire Celtics roster was responsible for the carelessness (out of control passes, ambitious lobs, traveling, etc.). Only Jaylen Brown and Semi Ojeleye escaped the first half without a miscue as the Celtics simply struggled to get shots up for most of the 12 minutes.


• Luckily for Boston, the Sixers offense was nearly just as bad. They piled up 11 first half turnovers of their own, struggling to create consistent scoring themselves against a potent Celtics offense.


• On a night the Celtics desperately needed a second scorer to step up, Tatum and Brown were 1-of-9 from the field with just two points.


• With the offense struggling, Stevens has kept Aron Baynes glued to the bench, going with Al Horford on Embiid during most of the second quarter. He held up nicely in the post, limiting Embiid to 3-of-10 shooting in the half.


• No first half free throws for the C's, a sign of their lack of aggressiveness/strong Sixers D.


• Stevens has already played 12 players so he's going to have to search hard during halftime to find a group with some rhythm to score this half.

• With the top shooters for both teams out, this was a defensive struggle early. Aron Baynes did a great job per usual trying to contain Joel Embiid, while Al Horford kept Ben Simmons from getting much going to the hoop.


• C's offense was a bit out of sorts as well. The Sixers are a top-10 defensive team themselves and turnovers became an issue again


• Strong start for Al Horford (3-of-3) from the field.


• Marcus Morris took a shot from Daniel Theis in the face, that sidelined him for a few minutes as he got attention from the trainerrs.


• Celtics second unit really let them down in the final few minutes of the frame, letting Trevor Booker and T.J. McConnell find some rhythm on the offensive end, with dribble penetration and finishes around the basket.


• Terry Rozier's shooting woes from Tuesday night have carried over.


• Six turnovers over the first 12 minutes for Boston.

• Kyrie Irving (shoulder)and Guerschon Yabusele (illness) are out for Thursday's game. Marcus Smart will suit up despite dealing with illness over the last couple days. He'll get the start at point guard in Irving's place.


• The Sixers will be without starting shooting guard J.J. Redick due to a broken bone in his leg. He'll miss at least the next two weeks. Richaun Holmes is also out due to illness.


• This is the fourth and final meeting of the regular season between the two teams. The Celtics have won all three head-to-head meeting thus far, including a blowout win last week in London.


• More notes and updates to come during pregame media availability