Rapid Recap is designed for the busiest of Celtics fans. Whether you can’t stay awake to read 10 paragraphs or your hangover is just too much, Rapid Recap tells the timeline of the game in only a minute or two.
“Please, sirs, the Celtics fanbase would like to see some brooms today.” And brooms we got, albeit in somewhat grim fashion. After a tough back-and-forth, lead-changing battle for 2.5 quarters in which the Sixers capitalized on free throws while Kemba Walker powered the Cs with one of his best recent performances, an ugly-looking injury to Tobias Harris’s eye thinned an already Simmons-less roster, and a Jayson Tatum scoring drive sealed the deal. (The 110-106 final score is…misleading, to say the least.)
Walker complimented the 32 points of his first-ever playoff series win with 4 boards, 4 assists, a steal and 2 blocks. Tatum’s performance was just as dominant in its own way: 28-15-4 plus a steal and 2 blocks. Jaylen Brown didn’t score as prolifically (16-5-2 and a steal), but still had vital triples and defensive actions, and Daniel Theis had one of his best scoring games in the bubble with 15 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and a block.
KEMBA WALKER STEP BACK TOO LETHAL 🗣 pic.twitter.com/eh9wUcZzzg
— Overtime (@overtime) August 22, 2020
The War on Theis started early today. He lasted 30 seconds before a foul and a turnover forced Kanter to replace him:
Predictive text getting real good at "how is that a foul on Theis?"
— Thin Glizzy (@bayne_train) August 23, 2020
(For what it’s worth, Kanter has generally been pretty solid this series, so it wasn’t a huge issue early on in this contest, despite his deficiencies in pick-and-roll defense and other areas.)
Tobias Harris just hit his first 3-pointer of the series, in Game 4. Which means he has now, at long last, caught up to Enes Kanter in that category.
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) August 23, 2020
Kemba was the primary offensive force in the first quarter, establishing a decent lead on Philly alongside Brown. Tatum seemed more focused on playing a facilitator role early on, but had this highlight:
JT with the coast-to-coast attack pic.twitter.com/GrCicGPv9b
— Taylor Snow (@taylorcsnow) August 23, 2020
Kemba Walker doesn’t want to play a game five.
— Dante Turo (@DanteOnDeck) August 23, 2020
But the Cs goofed by getting in the bonus too early, allowing the Sixers to crawl back into the game, and then a lead, despite making few actual baskets. (None of the usual ref annoyances—the Foster/Brothers/Zarba trio—were present. This was just the bubble’s generally oversensitive whistle, some legit Boston mistakes and a definite dip in Boston shotmaking.)
Sixers have taken more free throw attempts (19) than the Celtics have taken shots (18) in the first quarter.
— Brian Robb (@BrianTRobb) August 23, 2020
Celtics haven't scored since the 5:17 mark
— John Karalis 🇬🇷🇺🇦 (@John_Karalis) August 23, 2020
Brad going 11 deep in the 1st quarter? Is this summer league or a close out game?
— Chuck M. (@McK_Chuck) August 23, 2020
(Sidebar: Some folks think national broadcasters have been in the tank for Philly, and that might’ve been true in Game 3, but…find you someone who compliments you the way Doris Burke compliments Jayson Tatum. I’ll allow it!)
End of 1Q: 76ers 32, Celtics 27
☘️ Walker: 9 PTS, 2 REB
☘️ Brown: 6 PTS
🔔 Richardson: 8 PTS, 3 AST
🔔 Embiid: 6 PTS, 3 REB— Taylor Snow (@taylorcsnow) August 23, 2020
Boston quickly got back into it with a series of triples by Theis and Kemba, the latter of whom withstood a dogshit hip-check from Embiid and then immediately responded by draining another three. (Walker had 18 of his blank points after barely 16 minutes of gameplay.) The Cs retook and kept the lead despite some very odd moments, like a truly embarrassing sequence of Semi Ojeleye mistakes:
It has been that kind of game for Semi Ojeleye. Missing open 3s and when he crashes the boards and gets a sweet offensive rebound, he travels. And then follows that up by getting beat off the dribble by Alec Burks. pic.twitter.com/T3NEIu3Bv0
— A. Sherrod Blakely (@ASherrodblakely) August 23, 2020
https://twitter.com/maxacarlin/status/1297595358160343040?s=20
You know how I said Kanter was doing OK earlier? Forget that. It didn’t last long. More importantly, Philly turned up the intensity on their defense back to what it was most of the regular season, and then they were in the lead again, though it was a rather narrow 58-57.
No 3-point attempts for Tatum in that first half. In my *opinion* the Celtics are better off when Tatum has 3-point attempts.
— Adam Himmelsbach (@AdamHimmelsbach) August 23, 2020
Kemba’s intensity from the first half didn’t abate, and became infectious among the rest of the squad:
https://twitter.com/maxacarlin/status/1297603848056573953?s=20
https://twitter.com/maxacarlin/status/1297605456651792393?s=20
Kemba slammed on the brakes 👀 pic.twitter.com/12Bgpnunn1
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) August 23, 2020
Brad Stevens, unfortunately, decided to get cute with his lineup at a rather inopportune time. I know he wanted to give the starters some rest, but…having Romeo Langford, Grant Williams and Brad Wanamaker out there with Theis and Jayson Tatum seemed unwise.
4 fouls in 2 minutes for Grant Williams.
— Brian Robb (@BrianTRobb) August 23, 2020
It all became moot, however, when Harris got tangled with Tatum on a drive for a layup and slammed his head on the ground.
Harris is able to stand up holding a towel to his left eye. He walks to the locker room. https://t.co/DlKMzs1ySK
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) August 23, 2020
He bled seriously from either the eye. All you can do is hope it’s not too serious.
DONT NEED 18 REPLAYS OF HEAD TRAUMA
— Handsome B. Wonderful (@JamPackard) August 23, 2020
Not gonna lie, the run the Cs went on after Harris left the floor didn’t exactly feel satisfying, even if it brought them their largest lead of the game.
JAYSON 😱 pic.twitter.com/m63lONci8A
— Taylor Snow (@taylorcsnow) August 23, 2020
Let's finish this ☘️ #BeatPHILA pic.twitter.com/3867UUF23J
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) August 23, 2020
Tatum has started taking 3s again, and in a related development, the Cs have outscored Philly 39-21 in the second half.
— Adam Himmelsbach (@AdamHimmelsbach) August 23, 2020
The final frame was ultimately anticlimactic, as such things often are when an injury is either one of or the deciding factor in how a game unfolds. Tatum led the final charge, with Brown doing plenty of work as well, and the damage Kemba had already done sealed the fate of the Sixers’ season.
AND ONE 💪🏾 pic.twitter.com/w8KrMRGJOE
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) August 23, 2020
Fighting the War on Theis is about principle https://t.co/9yVWJkWpGL
— Handsome B. Wonderful (@JamPackard) August 23, 2020
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