The Boston Celtics could very well be a better team without Kyrie Irving on the floor, believe it or not. They continued to prove just that without their starting point guard on Tuesday night, escaping the Wells Fargo Center with a 112-109 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. Gordon Hayward finished with 26 points on the night, including the go-ahead three-pointer with 1:50 to play in a game that was controversial, if you ask Sixers star Joel Embiid. The big man was not a fan of the officiating in this game, and was not afraid to speak his mind with some expletives in the postgame press conference. Bad officiating or not, the Celtics got plenty of production all over, with Al Horford posting 23 points and Jayson Tatum adding 20 points in their third straight win in the head-to-head series. The Celtics also beat the Sixers in five games in the Eastern Conference semifinals last season.
Embiid finished with 23 points and 14 rebounds, while Jimmy Butler scored 22 in their first loss since acquiring Tobias Harris at the trade deadline. Hayward's three gave the Celtics a 105-103 lead, and Boston never trailed from there, as Harris missed a three-pointer in the final seconds to seal the home team's fate. The win for Boston ties them with the Sixers for fourth place in the Eastern Conference at 36-21, as they overcame losses that saw them blow big leads against the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers, both of which took place at the TD Garden. The Celtics will return home on Wednesday night to host the Detroit Pistons, while the Sixers will host the Miami Heat on Thursday night in their final game before the All-Star break.
Meanwhile, the Golden State Warriors may not be blowing teams out night after night anymore, but they are still racking up the victories. They came away with another win on their home floor Tuesday night, earning a 115-108 win over the Utah Jazz. Steph Curry helped the Warriors overcome a slow start, as well as a personal slow start, connecting on two clutch three-pointers in the fourth quarter to help his team stay ahead. Kevin Durant led the Warriors with 28 points and seven assists to help Golden State earn their third consecutive comeback victory. They hold the second-best record in the NBA at 41-15, only behind the Milwaukee Bucks. Despite it not always being pretty, the two-time defending champs have won five in a row overall and 16 of their past 17 games.
It was also the Warriors' third straight win over the Jazz, who could not pull away far enough during Golden State's slow start. Curry ended up with 24 points on 8-of-19 shooting, including 5-of-14 from three, despite missing his first five shots. Klay Thompson scored 22 points and DeMarcus Cousins had a double-double of 12 point and 10 rebounds for the first-place home team. Donovan Mitchell led the Jazz with 25 points and seven rebounds, and Rudy Gobert had 13 points and 16 rebounds for Utah, who are done until a week from Friday when they visit the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Warriors are back at it on Wednesday to visit the Portland Trail Blazers.
Embiid finished with 23 points and 14 rebounds, while Jimmy Butler scored 22 in their first loss since acquiring Tobias Harris at the trade deadline. Hayward's three gave the Celtics a 105-103 lead, and Boston never trailed from there, as Harris missed a three-pointer in the final seconds to seal the home team's fate. The win for Boston ties them with the Sixers for fourth place in the Eastern Conference at 36-21, as they overcame losses that saw them blow big leads against the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers, both of which took place at the TD Garden. The Celtics will return home on Wednesday night to host the Detroit Pistons, while the Sixers will host the Miami Heat on Thursday night in their final game before the All-Star break.
Meanwhile, the Golden State Warriors may not be blowing teams out night after night anymore, but they are still racking up the victories. They came away with another win on their home floor Tuesday night, earning a 115-108 win over the Utah Jazz. Steph Curry helped the Warriors overcome a slow start, as well as a personal slow start, connecting on two clutch three-pointers in the fourth quarter to help his team stay ahead. Kevin Durant led the Warriors with 28 points and seven assists to help Golden State earn their third consecutive comeback victory. They hold the second-best record in the NBA at 41-15, only behind the Milwaukee Bucks. Despite it not always being pretty, the two-time defending champs have won five in a row overall and 16 of their past 17 games.
It was also the Warriors' third straight win over the Jazz, who could not pull away far enough during Golden State's slow start. Curry ended up with 24 points on 8-of-19 shooting, including 5-of-14 from three, despite missing his first five shots. Klay Thompson scored 22 points and DeMarcus Cousins had a double-double of 12 point and 10 rebounds for the first-place home team. Donovan Mitchell led the Jazz with 25 points and seven rebounds, and Rudy Gobert had 13 points and 16 rebounds for Utah, who are done until a week from Friday when they visit the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Warriors are back at it on Wednesday to visit the Portland Trail Blazers.
