Final: Celtics 109, 76ers 101 -- C's young duo steps up in Game 1 win

Jayson Tatum became the youngest Celtic in franchise history to score 30+ points and 10+ rebounds in a playoff game and Jaylen Brown scored 15 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter, helping the C’s rally for a crucial Game 1 victory. Jayson Tatum led the way with 30 points and 13 rebounds to go with three blocks, helping take advantage of a Sixers team that didn’t have a good matchup for him on the wing. Brown was the hero late though, helping the C’s rally from a fourth-quarter deficit at the beginning of the fourth quarter despite suffering a right thigh contusion early in the second half from Joel Embiid.

Embiid had a team-high 26 points and 16 rebounds for the Sixers but the C’s did a nice job slowing him down with double teams, forcing the big man to make five turnovers over his 37 minutes. Kemba Walker chipped in with 19 points and 5 assists, including several big free throws in the fourth quarter to help seal the win.

All eyes after this one will now turn to Gordon Hayward however after the veteran wing suffered a sprained right ankle late in the fourth quarter. He walked off the court under his own power but his status for upcoming games in this series looks unclear. The good news for Boston is that it isn’t the same ankle that Hayward injured back on opening night in 2017.

—C’s piling up fouls early while trying to guard Embiid in the post.

—Rob Williams looking a little more about his summer league self with a couple easy misses around the basket and a few ill advised fouls early. He's got 3 total in 10 minutes.

—C’s not finishing well around the basket early as a team, shooting 33 percent from the field in opening 17 minutes.

—9-2 Celtics run when starters come back in with Smart to break open a one-point game. C's rode this edge into halftime.

—11 turnovers for the Sixers in opening 18 minutes, leading to plenty of transition chances for C’s

—Tatum erupts for 15 of his game-high 21 points in the first half, taking command of the game with so terrific play in isolation and transition.

—C’s doing a terrific job with getting in passing lanes, forcing 13 turnovers in the first half.

—Bench has struggled with their shooting, going just 2-of-7 from the field with four turnovers.

—Jaylen Brown is the only other Celtic in double figures with 10 points.

—Embiid 4/4 to open the game, hitting a couple tough post ups.

—Harris tough midrange make on Hayward

—C’s getting plenty of open looks but haven’t hit any 3s early beyond Jaylen Brown (2/3)

—Look for Brown to keep taking advantage of Sixers bigs on the perimeter with Horford getting the opening assignment.

—Sixers push Josh Richardson on Jayson Tatum in a signal that they are worried more about him than Kemba Walker in the half court. Walker will be able to get all the separation he wants against a subpar defender in Shake Milton

—C’s active in passing lanes early with a couple steals early that led to fast break points. Sixers piled up 7 turnovers in first quarter.

—8 points in first six minutes for Jaylen Brown, finishing with 10 points in the quarter.

—Sixers conceding 3s to Daniel Theis early (he's 1/3 from deep).

—Thybulle with a nice block on Tatum on a pull up 3

—Four steals for the Celtics in the first eight minutes, showing very active hands early in passing lanes.

—Kanter gets a quick hook for Rob Williams when Embiid goes to the bench.

• Romeo Langford is listed as questionable for the Celtics due to torn right wrist ligaments. Brad Stevens indicated that the rookie swingman will need surgery after the season to heal the injury but he will plan on being through the pain during the postseason. The Sixers will be without Ben Simmons (knee surgery) for the entire postseason and backup wing Glenn Robinson III (oblique) for the next 7-10 days at least.


• Kemba Walker will have his minutes limit lifted for the postseason, which should allow him to play over 32 minutes for the first time in Orlando after ramping up his conditioning in the wake of a sore left knee. "I’m ready to go out there and play big minutes and try to do what I can to help my team win games," Walker said. "Yes, I’m definitely tired of answering questions about the knee, but I know you gotta ask me so I answer to the best of my abilities.”


• Brett Brown continues to weight the possibility of adding rookie Matisse Thybulle to the starting five in place of Shake Milton or Al Horford in order to better matchup with the C's versatility. “We’re talking a lot about doing different things,” Brown said Sunday afternoon. “It is being considered. Obviously I’m not going to tell you that. We’re talking about a lot of things but I think to your original point, Matisse will have a significant role defensively in this series.”


• Jayson Tatum on facing the Sixers without Ben Simmons: "I mean, they will miss him, he's one of their best players. They have a bunch of other guys around the same height and play the same position that are interchangeable. Those guys are really good and they are a tough team. They play hard and play well on both ends. They have a bunch of different guys they can throw at you to make it tough."