Payton Pritchard delivered a career-best shooting night, draining eight three-pointers and scoring 28 points to help the Boston Celtics defeat the Philadelphia 76ers 124-104 on Thursday.
Jayson Tatum recorded his fourth career triple-double with 15 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists, while Jaylen Brown contributed 20 points for Boston.
The Celtics improved to 40-16 after securing their eighth win in nine games, while Philadelphia dropped its sixth straight contest and fell to 20-35.
Kristaps Porzingis finished with 17 points, and Derrick White added 16 points and 10 rebounds as Boston overwhelmed the 76ers early.
The Celtics shot 15-of-25 from deep in the first half and finished the game making 24-of-54 (44.4%) from three-point range.
Paul George led the 76ers with 17 points, but Philadelphia struggled to keep pace with Boston’s offense.
Tyrese Maxey and Kelly Oubre Jr. each scored 16 points, while Joel Embiid was limited to 15 points on 3-of-9 shooting in 27 minutes.
Philadelphia trailed by as many as 29 points and never mounted a serious comeback after the first quarter.
Jrue Holiday added eight points, and Al Horford provided 11 points off the bench as Boston’s depth played a major factor.
Pritchard, who logged 31 minutes, shot 10-of-18 from the field and 8-of-15 from deep, delivering one of the best performances of his career.
The 76ers have struggled since losing Embiid to a knee injury earlier in the season, and even his return has not been enough to halt their slide.
Boston’s dominance extended beyond shooting, as they won the rebounding battle 49-44 and recorded 33 assists compared to Philadelphia’s 23.
Despite the 76ers entering the game with a 7-7 record when Embiid, Maxey, and George played together, they were unable to match the Celtics’ offensive firepower.
