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Harden collected 42 points, nine assists and
eight rebounds while Joel Embiid recorded 34 points and 13
boards for the third-seeded 76ers, who snapped a two-game skid.
Game 5 is Tuesday in Boston.
Harden made 16 of 23 shots from the floor -- including 6 of 9
from 3-point range -- to bounce back from a pair of disastrous
shooting performances in Games 2 and 3. He sank just 5 of 28
shots from the floor and 2 of 13 from beyond the arc in the
previous two games.
Boston's Jayson Tatum overcame missing his first eight shots
from the floor to finish with 24 points, 18 rebounds and six
assists. Jaylen Brown had 23 points, Marcus Smart added 21
points and seven assists and Malcolm Brogdon contributed 19
points with eight rebounds off the bench for the second-seeded
Celtics.
Embiid sank a pair of free throws to give Philadelphia a 113-112
lead with 56 seconds left in overtime before Tatum answered by
sinking a 3-pointer with 38.1 seconds remaining. Harden
countered by converting from the corner with 19 seconds left
before Smart's 3-pointer was deemed to be released after the
buzzer.
Smart converted a three-point play to give Boston a 112-109 lead
with 3:31 remaining in overtime. Embiid sank a floater, however
the potential go-ahead basket was negated after he was whistled
for a charge against Smart with 1:49 left, which the Sixers
unsuccessfully challenged.
Earlier, P.J. Tucker converted a three-point play to forge a tie
at 105-105 before being whistled for a foul on Smart, who made
both free-throw attempts with 51.3 seconds remaining in the
fourth quarter. Harden sank a mid-range floater to level the
contest with 16.4 seconds to play, and Smart's open 3-point
attempt at the buzzer bounced off the front rim.
The 76ers led by as much as 16 late in the third quarter, and
Embiid converted a slick pass from Harden to give Philadelphia a
96-88 lead with 7:15 remaining in the fourth quarter. Boston
made a stand, however, as Smart drained two 3-pointers to
highlight his team's 17-4 run before Harden made a basket and
Tucker converted a three-point play to forge a tie.
--Field Level Media
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