76ers punch back in Game 2, beat poor-shooting Celtics to even series

Zack Cox, Boston Herald on Apr 21, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

BOSTON — Joe Mazzulla had a message for the media when he took a seat behind his pregame podium: Don’t expect Game 2 of Boston Celtics-Philadelphia 76ers to be a repeat of Game 1.

“Today’s going to be a much more difficult challenge,” Boston’s head coach said Tuesday evening. “I expect a better version of the Sixers.”

He got one.

Two days after losing by 32 points in the first-round series opener, Philadelphia punched back against the heavily favored Celtics, winning 111-97 at TD Garden to pull even in the best-of-seven.

The biggest change for the Sixers? Far more efficient shooting. They more than quadrupled their number of made 3-pointers, going 19 for 39 from deep after a 4 for 23 in Game 1. The backcourt duo of rookie VJ Edgecombe (30 points, 10 rebounds) and All-Star Tyrese Maxey (29 points, nine assists) combined for 11 of Philly’s 3s. Paul George added 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting for a Philly team that again played without former NBA MVP center Joel Embiid (appendectomy).

Boston got a near-triple-double from Jayson Tatum (19 points, 14 rebounds, nine assists) and 36-7-4 from Jaylen Brown, but its secondary scorers struggled.

As a team, the Celtics shot 26% from 3 (13 for 50), their sixth-worst mark of the season. They trailed by two with six minutes remaining before an 11-0 Sixers run put the game out of reach.

Game 3 is Friday night at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

Brown brought the Garden crowd to its feet early with a ferocious dunk over Adem Bona, who started at center for Philly in Embiid’s absence.

The Celtics star isolated against Maxey, bullied his way past the smaller Sixers guard and then posterized Bona. The 6-foot-10 big man fell to the ground while Brown celebrated his slam, resulting in a questionable technical foul that drew loud jeers from the Boston faithful.

Brown also drew three fouls on drives during the first quarter, though he made just one of his first four free throws.

The Celtics, after absorbing an early salvo of midrange makes from Paul George, Edgecombe and Maxey, responded with a 16-0 run to take a 36-13 lead. Derrick White, Sam Hauser and Nikola Vucevic all hit 3-pointers during that push, and Boston initially outworked Philly on the glass.

Then, the Sixers found their stroke from 3-point range, and the Celtics got sloppy. After missing its first six attempts from beyond the arc, Philly hit its next five straight — more than it made in all of Game 1 (four). Boston also had two passes intercepted, leading to easy baskets in transition, and surrendered a spate of offensive rebounds.

A third-chance tip-in by George just before the first-quarter buzzer cut the Celtics’ lead to 28-25. An Andre Drummond putback — two of the 17 second-chance points Philadelphia scored before halftime — put the Sixers ahead 41-39 five minutes into the second.

Tatum briefly sparked the Celtics by stealing an Edgecombe pass and racing for a fast-break dunk. But Maxey and Edgecombe proceeded to score on six of Philly’s next nine possessions — including four 3-pointers — with Edgecombe also notching a steal and Maxey drawing a charge during that stretch. The backcourt duo combined for 30 first-half points while shooting better than 50% from the field.

Brown countered with an and-one layup and drew a three-shot foul, but he misfired on three triples in the final minute of the half. The Sixers took a 62-54 lead into halftime, with Brown and Tatum accounting for half of Boston’s points (15 and 12, respectively).

The eight-point halftime deficit was the Celtics’ largest since March 4, when they were blown out by the Charlotte Hornets. It reached 13 early in the second half. Brown and Tatum then combined to score 12 straight Celtics points, including consecutive Brown 3s that cut Philly’s lead to 74-68 and triggered a Nick Nurse timeout.

The two long-range makes snapped an 0 for 5 start from 3 for Boston’s top scorer.

The Celtics held Maxey to two points and one assist in the third quarter, but they struggled to contain Edgecombe. After free throws by Brown made it a three-point game, the rookie scored seven of the final 10 points of the quarter to send the 76ers into the fourth with an 84-77 advantage.

Boston got to within two early in the final period (on field goals by White and Payton Pritchard) and again five minutes later (on back-to-back makes by Tatum and Brown), but both rallies stalled. Maxey replied to the second with two 3-pointers bookended around a White miss.

Philly reestablished a double-digit lead, and the Celtics emptied their bench in the final minutes.

The loss ensured there will be a Game 5 back in Boston next Tuesday. Game 4 is Sunday night in Philadelphia.

____