Celtics rely on second-half surge to sweep 76ers

[August 24, 2020]  The Boston Celtics completed a four-game sweep of the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs on Sunday afternoon, riding Kemba Walker's game-high 32 points and a 14-point run bridging the third and fourth quarters to a 110-106 victory at the Walt Disney World Complex near Orlando.

The third-seeded Celtics will move on to the Eastern semifinals, where they will face second-seeded Toronto, which also finished off a sweep of its first-round opponent, Brooklyn, on Sunday.

Jayson Tatum finished with 28 points, including seven inside the final 3:20 of the third period, during which the Celtics broke from a 77-all tie to take an 89-77 advantage into the fourth quarter.

Enes Kanter opened the fourth quarter with a hoop to complete a 14-0 run, and when Tatum connected from 3-point range with 9:57 remaining, the Celtics had broken the game open at 96-79.

The sixth-seeded 76ers got no closer than 10 after that until the final seconds.

Walker's 32 points came on 8-for-15 shooting overall and 4-for-9 from 3-point range. The Celtics outscored the 76ers 36-27 on threes.

Tatum completed a double-double with a game-high 15 rebounds for Boston, while Jaylen Brown contributed 16 points and Daniel Theis 15 to the win.

Tatum, Brown and Theis bombed in two 3-pointers apiece.

The postseason sweep was the first for the Celtics over the 76ers since the Syracuse Nationals relocated to Philadelphia in 1964.

Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) shoots as Philadelphia 76ers forward Al Horford (42) defends during the first quarter in game four of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series at The Field House. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Joel Embiid led the way for the 76ers with 30 points, but misfired on four of his five 3-point attempts. Philadelphia shot just 9-for-34 (26.5 percent) from beyond the arc.

Tobias Harris had 20 points, Josh Richardson and Shake Milton 14 apiece, Alec Burks 13 and Al Horford 12 for the 76ers, who played the series without injured All-Star guard Ben Simmons.

Embiid and Horford both completed double-doubles with a team-high 10 rebounds.

Seeking to avoid a first-round playoff elimination for the first time since 2011, the 76ers led by as many as six in the first quarter and retained a 58-57 advantage at the break.

--Field Level Media

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