(Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
The Boston Celtics were mighty impressive in Sunday’s Game 7 versus the Philadelphia 76ers, as they turned a competitive first half into a beatdown in the second half.
Jayson Tatum led the way with a historic 51-point effort, while Jaylen Brown added 25 points in the Celtics’ 112-88 victory.
After the game, guard Marcus Smart talked about the win and the entire series.
.@tvabby caught up exclusively with Marcus Smart after the Cs big win over Philly pic.twitter.com/v0TTvpVHHB
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) May 14, 2023
“It’s always sweet,” said Smart about the Celtics’ sixth playoff series win over Philly in his career. “Anytime you can be in the playoffs, get to go to a Game 7 and then close it out on your home court, it’s always sweet, so we’re happy. We played against a really good team in Philly, got the MVP (Joel Embiid), rightfully so, deservingly, and they played hard. They pushed us to the brink and we came out with the win today.”
Most of the credit for this victory goes to Tatum, but the Celtics’ defense was stifling, and Smart had something to do with it.
He helped prevent Philly’s guards from going off, and overall, Boston held the Sixers to just 37.3 percent overall shooting and 21.6 percent 3-point shooting.
Boston trailed this series just days ago 3-2 after getting blown out on their home court in Game 5, and some thought they were headed for an early start to their postseason.
But they responded with a Game 6 win that was also spearheaded by their defense, as they limited the Sixers to just 86 points.
Boston will now face the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals, making it the third such matchup between the two teams in the last four seasons.
Job one for the Celtics will be containing Jimmy Butler, who is quite possibly the most feared player in the NBA come crunch time — he’s averaging 31.1 points a game through 10 playoff games.
Last year, they got past Miami in seven games after surviving a riveting seventh contest at home that was decided in the final moments.
In facing Miami, they will look to avenge last year’s NBA Finals loss and go after their 18th world championship.
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