BSJ Game Report: Celtics 109, Sixers 108 - C's survive late run, Brown drops 32 for third straight win

Everything you need to know about the Celtics' win in Philadelphia, with BSJ insight and analysis

IN A NUTSHELL

I can’t imagine a better first quarter for Boston. They won all the margins except for free-throw shooting, and Jaylen Brown was amazing as they built a 13-point lead. The lead touched 24, but Philly ended on a huge run to cut it to 11 at halftime. They tied the game in the third, but Boston fought back to take a seven-point lead into the fourth. The Sixers made a late run, fueled by Celtics' mistakes, but missed chances to win. 

Box Score

HEADLINES

- Three in a row: Let’s put all the late-game stuff aside for a second. The Celtics have won three straight games after starting on a three-game losing streak. As I wrote earlier today, this now guarantees no worse than 3-4 start over a brutal seven-game stretch to start the season. That is huge for these guys. This sets the tone for the rest of the season. 

- Terrible late execution: What matters most is that they got there, but how they got there is still a bit of a problem. It was a mix of everything, a bad turnover, a bunch of missed shots, and the Sixers making everything. The good news is they put the mistakes behind them to defend the last two possessions and hold on, but that could have been a much easier finish. 

- Jaylen Brown still on fire: He finished with 32 points, chalking up his third 30+ point game in the past four games. His efficiency is off the charts right now, and that will level off at some point. But 32 points on 13-19 shooting and 4-7 from deep, along with six assists, is incredible. 

TURNING POINT 

I’m very tempted to go with the run that got the game up to 24 because it was a big enough lead that Boston never trailed in this game. 

My two other choices are the Celtics' answer to the tie game, starting with Payton Pritchard’s offensive rebound where he found Brown for a 3. That triggered a 17-5 run to get the lead back up to 12. Or the two-and-a-half-minute stretch starting at 5:46 in the fourth where White, Xavier Tilllman, and Brown all hit big shots to keep the lead at double digits. 

I think the fourth quarter stretch has to be it because Boston answered a lot of Philly’s shot-making and kept the lead at double digits long enough to make the lead insurmountable. It was just enough runway to land the plane. 

THINGS I LIKED

- Jaylen Brown: Okay, he had some bad turnovers in the second half that helped the Sixers get back into it. He also hit some big shots and, once again, was the tone-setter for the Celtics. It’s impossible for him to keep this shooting up for a whole season, but he’s been playing All-NBA basketball for five games. 

- The first 20 minutes: This was the best Celtics basketball of the season. It was the gorgeous, energetic, high-energy brand of basketball that the Celtics promised to play to start the season. It was about as perfect as this team can play. It all went away starting at the 3:21 mark of the second quarter, but until then, it was exactly what this team should look like every night. 

- Xavier Tillman: Neemias Queta was really good early and then not so good when Joel Embiid switched from post-ups to facing up. So Joe Mazzulla switched to Tillman on Embiid and it went very well. Tillman’s late switch onto Tyrese Maxey helped prevent a go-ahead basket. He also hit a 3-pointer that helped the Celtics hold on to their lead. 

- Hugo Gonzalez: First of all, the effort was off the charts. He damn near killed himself trying to prevent an open dunk.

He was +10 on the night, partly because he was hitting the offensive glass and defending. 

- Anfernee Simons: All of the guys in this section had shaky moments. Simons didn’t shoot great (7-21), but he was +23 in the one-point win, and his 19 points off the bench were huge. 

- Payton Pritchard (non-3-point shooting edition): Inside the arc, Pritchard set an early tone by getting into the paint and hitting turnaround jumpers. 

He was 1-9 from 3, but 6-8 from 2. He also had four rebounds and four assists. 

- Josh Minott: I’m not going to excuse him missing those late free throws that could have made it a 3-point game. However, he was making energy plays all over the place, and he had a huge late rebound to help hold Philly off. 

- Margins: Celtics had 16 offensive rebounds to Philly’s nine. They won the turnover battle by eight, which led to a +14 in points off turnovers. They took 101 shots and allowed 78. They won all the margins they needed to win to come out on top. 

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE

- Fouls: They gave up 29 free throws and were -14 at the line. The fouls, especially the and-ones, gave the Sixers a lot of life. 

- Poise down the stretch: They were a little too frantic late in the game. It’s not the worst thing in the world to have a meltdown like that and win because you can head into the film session with a little more confidence. On the plus side, they didn’t let it destroy them. That's important. 

- Slumps: I thought a couple of early makes might light a fire for Derrick White, but he missed the rest of his 3-point shots. That included a couple of very open looks in the fourth quarter off offensive rebounds. Pritchard was 1-9 from deep. 

HIGHLIGHTS

ONE TAKE KARALIS WILL REGRET LATER

- Progress is being made

The Celtics did not execute well in the fourth quarter, but they also didn’t let those mistakes linger. 

“I thought we had five offensive rebounds on one possession and missed them, and then we sprinted back,” Mazzulla said after the game. “We just played with a great short-term memory.”

It’s an important skill because it’s the compounding of mistakes that really gives up huge runs. Bad teams let those mistakes linger. Good teams are generally past those mistakes right away. 

The hope is that being in that position the next time will get a little easier. Still, they found a way to win, which is an important step for this team. Each night might involve two or three guys who barely got minutes (or got none at all) in the previous game. That they're able to step into key roles and find ways to impact winning is impressive. 

Next Up: The Celtics host the Houston Rockets tomorrow night at TD Garden.