Celtics facing do-or-die Game 7 after blowout loss to 76ers

Zack Cox, Boston Herald on Apr 30, 2026

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PHILADELPHIA — Days ago, the Celtics looked poised to coast into the Eastern Conference semifinals after bludgeoning the 76ers in Game 4 of their first-round series.

Now, coach Joe Mazzulla’s bunch finds itself one loss away from a disastrous end to the season.

After collapsing on their home floor in the second half of Game 5, the Celtics squandered another chance to close out the underdog Sixers on Thursday, losing, 106-93, in Game 6 at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

Jayson Tatum (17 points, 11 rebounds) was ineffective after a strong first quarter and was shut down before the end of the third. Jaylen Brown (18 points) had one rebound, five turnovers and multiple defensive lapses. Nikola Vucevic had two points on 1-of-5 shooting and two boards. Derrick White was a game-worst minus-25. Payton Pritchard (14 points) shot 6 for 16 and 1 for 8 from 3-point range.

The 76ers got 27 points from Tyrese Maxey, 23 from Paul George and a near-triple-double from Joel Embiid (19 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists) in a game that effectively ended when Mazzulla pulled his starters with more than 10 minutes remaining.

The best-of-seven series now will be decided with a winner-take-all matchup at TD Garden on Saturday.

It will be the Celtics’ first Game 7 since the 2023 Eastern Conference finals, when they lost to the Miami Heat after rallying back from a 3-0 series deficit.

The last time Boston faced this scenario — needing to win a Game 7 to avoid blowing a 3-1 series lead? Nearly 40 years ago, in the 1987 East semifinals against Milwaukee.

Saturday’s winner will advance to face the New York Knicks, who laid waste to the Atlanta Hawks, 140-89, in a Game 6 clincher earlier Thursday night.

The Celtics fell into an early 11-4 hole while misfiring on seven of their first nine shots. Brown had two fouls and a turnover in the opening seven minutes. White turned it over twice in that span. But Tatum came out sharp, tallying nine points, nine rebounds and two assists in the first quarter.

Boston also had several quality defensive possessions against Embiid and Maxey. Among them: a Neemias Queta steal that sprang Sam Hauser for a fast-break layup that put the Celtics ahead 23-20.

Hauser came up limping after a midair collision with Embiid on the final play of the first quarter. A member of the Celtics’ training staff affixed a large ice pack to the veteran wing’s left thigh, but Hauser checked back in midway through the second quarter.

Brown began to heat up in the second, scoring 10 points in a six-minute span. But he was called to the bench after picking up his third foul with 5:05 to play in the half. That infraction — a push-off against Kelly Oubre Jr. — was Brown’s ninth offensive foul of the postseason, by far the most in the NBA. No other player had more than five entering Thursday’s action. Brown also committed the second-most offensive fouls during the regular season (40), trailing only Knicks big man Karl-Anthony Towns.

Moments later, Queta was whistled for his third foul and removed from the floor. That’s been another troubling trend for Boston this postseason: Queta entered the night tied for the NBA lead with 21 personal fouls, despite playing far fewer minutes than most of the league’s other top offenders.

Brown and Queta both sat out the rest of the half. In their absence, the 76ers built a 56-44 lead.

White hit his second 3-pointer of the game late in the second quarter — signs of life for the slumping guard, who came in shooting 29.8% and 21.2% from deep in the playoffs — but Philadelphia entered halftime with a 58-49 cushion.

Among Boston’s biggest first-half problems were shaky free-throw shooting (7 for 13), ineffective offensive rebounding (just one on 20 missed field goals) and poor ball security (nine turnovers). The Celtics committed their 10th and 11th giveaways on their first two possessions of the second half, including yet another Brown offensive foul.

The 76ers controlled play throughout the third quarter — outscoring the offensively anemic Celtics 24-14 — and carried an 82-63 lead into the fourth. Boston played most of the final period with backups Pritchard, Baylor Scheierman, Jordan Walsh, Ron Harper Jr. and Luka Garza on the floor.

That reserve lineup — most of which starred in the Celtics’ stunning Game 82 win over Orlando — pushed the Sixers’ starters, cutting a 23-point deficit to 12 with seven minutes remaining. It never truly threatened Philadelphia’s lead, but it forced coach Nick Nurse to keep his regulars in the game until the final minutes.

All five 76ers starters played at least 34 minutes, with Maxey and George both hitting 40. Four of the Celtics’ starting five were in the 20s, with White finishing at 32.

Having a fresher top unit is one of the few silver linings as Boston shifts its focus to Saturday’s must-win clash on Causeway Street. In NBA history, teams that took a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven series went on to win 95.7% of the time (286-13). Thirty-six of those series reached a Game 7, with the 3-1 team posting a 23-13 record in those finales.