The Cameroonian Joel Embiid made a double double of 52 points and 13 rebounds on Tuesday to lead the Sixers in a tight victory (103-101) against another of the greats in the East, the Boston Celtics, who suffered the absence of Jaylen Brown and They did not have a particularly fine Jayson Tatum.
The Celtics could not count on one of their main stars, Brown, in addition to Robert Williams III, Danilo Gallinari and Payton Pritchard; while Mac McClung, Jaden Springer and Louis King were not available for the Sixers.
Embiid also served 6 assists and put 2 blocks, James Harden also scored a double double with 20 points, 5 rebounds, 10 assists and a block. Only PJ Tucker, with 3 of 3 triples and 11 points and 2 rebounds, had more than 10 points for the locals.
For Joe Mazzulla’s, Derrick White signed an extraordinary performance with 26 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks. Tatum had 19 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals, while Malcolm Brogdom, coming off the bench, added 18 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists. Marcus Smart added 17 points, Al Horford 11 (with 8 rebounds and 6 assists) and Grant Williams 10.
EMBIID EXPLOSIVE IN THE FIRST QUARTER
A triple by ‘la Barba’ Harden and 9 points by Embiid in the first minutes of the game gave the locals confidence starting the initial segment, in which they were 8 points above, but a dunk and a shot from outside the ring by Tatum in a few seconds they equalized the score at 14.
The game was tight in the following minutes with several changes of leadership, but Embiid’s forays into the opposite paint adding 18 points, in addition to his 7 rebounds and one assist, in the first quarter left the Sixers ahead at the end of the set ( 28-22).
Smart, from triple, turned the light around two minutes into the second quarter (28-29) and an unstoppable Brogdon with 13 points so far tied at 35 before reaching the halfway point of the segment.
An unsuccessful Embiid needed almost 10 minutes of play to score again, and the Cameroonian center did so signing two of his effective runs in a few seconds for the double double of 24 points and 10 rebounds before halfway through the game .
For the Sixers, Harden also reacted, who reached 15 personal points from three-pointers and free throws at halftime (53-46).
Both squads tightened their defenses early in the second half and struggled to find holes in attack.
Embiid reached his 30 points halfway through the third quarter with one of his runs and jumping back (62-57).
THE CELTICS FALL SHORT
While the locals managed to make their way to the basket with Embiid as the striker and Harden as the assistant, the Bostonians tried more from long range in the set.
After a dunk from the past ring with one hand and two free throws, the African added 38 points and left the lead at 72-67 at the end of the third quarter.
The visitors continued to contest the fragile dominance of the locals and a triple by White tied it at 74 and another by Brogdon put the Celtics ahead in the opening minutes of the final quarter (74-77).
Embiid reached his 40 points to tie at 79 and at 42 to equalize at 81 while White took on the responsibility of leading his team in an exciting game without Brown and with Tatum missing at times and often unwise.
The Celtics closed their defense, but the Cameroonian from the Sixers continued to find holes and with a two-handed mate he reached his 50 goals, and thanks to three triples by PJ Tucker in the last minutes, the Philadelphians prevailed over the Bostonians, although with scare in the last seconds (103-101).
