“76ers Dominate Celtics in Game 5, Close to Eastern Conference Finals”

After silencing the TD crowd Garden and put the Celticsdefending champions of the Eastern Conferenceon the verge of a second round exit, the players of the 76ers they barely managed a smile as they left the court.

Embiid scored 33 points and Philadelphia easily took a 3-2 lead in the East semifinals, beating Boston 115-103 on Tuesday night.

The 76ers led by as many as 21 points in the fourth quarter as home fans booed the Celtics, and they can close out the series and advance to the conference finals when they host Game 6 on Thursday night. Philadelphia hasn’t reached that stage of the playoffs since 2001.

It was the third straight 30-point game in the series for the reigning MVP, who used his offensive weapons to shred the Celtics’ defense. He also had seven rebounds, four blocks and three 3-pointers.

Tyrese Maxey added 30 points and six 3-pointers. James Harden finished with 3 points, 17 assists and eight rebounds.

Jayson Tatum led Boston with 36 points, but he went just 11-for-27 from the field. Jaylen Brown finished with 24 points. The Celtics made 12 of 38 shots from the 3-point line.

The 76ers led by as many as 19 points in the third quarter and took an 88-72 lead into the fourth. A quick burst by the Celtics cut the deficit to 11, but Philadelphia responded with a 10-2 run to bring it back to 102-83.

It was 105-89 when Brown broke free on quick break and tried to go down on a layup. But Embiid, staying in hot pursuit, was there to crush him.

Philadelphia made a concerted effort to get the ball to Embiid in the post early on. He was able to take down midrange jumpers, helping to open the floor for his teammates when Boston’s big men were pushed out of the paint.

Meanwhile, the Celtics struggled to find their shot throughout.

The 76ers enjoyed an early rebounding advantage and had success with Embiid running pick-and-roll sets on Al Horford. He led to scoring chances for Embiid and helped Philadelphia build a 15-point first-half lead.

Tatum missed his first six downs before hitting a running back with 5:48 remaining in the second quarter. He finished the first half with 15 points, but he went just 3-for-11 from the field (1-for-6 from 3-point range).

Boston eventually cobbled together a 10-0 run to cut the deficit, but Philadelphia calmed down and went into halftime leading 58-49.

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