PHILADELPHIA — Tyrese Maxey scored 30 points, a resurgent Paul George had 23 points and a Philadelphia 76ers’ team that lost by 32 points twice in this first-round playoff series played their most complete game of the season and forced Game 7 with a 106-93 win over the Boston Celtics on Thursday night.
The decisive game is Saturday in Boston.
Uplifted by Joel Embiid’s early return from an appendectomy, the Sixers rebounded from two blowout losses to win Game 5 in Boston and were buoyed by a throwback effort from George to keep a comfortable lead in Game 6. Embiid did his part in Game 6 with 19 points.
The play of the game — and maybe the series — came in the third when Kelly Oubre Jr. blocked Jaylen Brown, Maxey scooped the loose ball and fed to George on the break who then dazzled with a behind-the-back pass to VJ Edgecombe who finished with a thunderous dunk for a 69-54 lead.
A night after the Flyers won in overtime to advance to the second round of the NHL playoffs, Sixers fans cut loose after that slam.
The 76ers will only go as far as Embiid can take them on his injury-prone seven-foot frame and Maxey is a bona fide all-star. Edgecombe’s youthful exuberance made a fan favourite in Philly and an NBA Rookie of the Year finalist.
Lost in the shuffle at times is the 35-year-old George — in large part this season because of a 25-game suspension for flunking a drug test — who has deferred to the other three Sixers when needed yet can still flash that all-star form. George hit a team-high five 3s that all stretched the lead and the offense ran through him when Embiid — still recovering from his early April surgery — was on the bench.
George signed with the Sixers in the summer of 2024 on a four-year, $212-million free-agent contract and was expected to form a 1-2 championship punch with Embiid. George was instead derailed by injuries, personal issues and the suspension that had him forgotten at times by fans and in the offense.
Not against Boston. He keyed Philadelphia’s game of the season, a stunner given how the Celtics toyed with them in their three wins this series. The Celtics never led in Game 6.
Brown was hampered by three fouls in the first half and finished with 18 points. Jayson Tatum had 17 for the Celtics and left in third quarter with an apparent calf injury.
The Celtics went more than 4 minutes without a point to close the third and the Sixers stormed into the final quarter with an 82-63 lead.
