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Monday night in the 2023 NBA Playoffs produced some stunners with the 76ers beating the Celtics without Joel Embiid in Game 1. The Nuggets also finished strong in the second half to go up 2-0 on the struggling Suns.
James Harden Puts 76ers on Back Without Joel Embiid in Boston
The 76ers were a 10-point underdog without Joel Embiid in Game 1 of the semifinals in Boston. But James Harden had one of the finest games of his career, scoring 45 points with 7 made threes, including a late dagger to give the 76ers a 119-115 win.
Early on, you could see the impact of not having Embiid as the game was very offensive with the Celtics attacking the rim with ease. There were 2 free throw attempts in the entire first half. Boston finished with 66 points in the paint, the most by any team in the last two postseasons and 20 more points than Boston averaged in the regular season.
Jayson Tatum had 39 points for Boston, but the Celtics were minus-10 in turnovers and minus-21 points in made threes, two ways to describe how they could lose a game despite shooting 58.7% from the field. It is the fourth-highest FG% in a playoff loss by a home team since 1955.
Tyrese Maxey scored 26 points for the 76ers, who finished 12-of-12 at the free throw line. The game was tied going into the fourth quarter where Harden scored 15 points. His final basket gave the 76ers a 117-115 lead with 8.6 seconds left before an out of control Marcus Smart turned the ball over under the basket. Paul Reed took the ball and finished the Celtics off at the line.
Thanks to Harden turning back time with the heroics, the 76ers can choose to rest Embiid for another game with this unexpected 1-0 lead.
Jokic Leads Nuggets to 2-0 Lead Over Phoenix
The Suns are in real trouble now. Even in a game where neither team hit 100 points, the Suns still lost by double digits (97-87). Kevin Durant cleaned up his turnovers from Game 1, but he was 2-of-12 from distance as the Suns finished 6-of-31 from three.
The only reason there was not a bigger blowout was because Denver shot 7-of-27 from three. It was a 42-40 bricklaying contest at halftime. But in the second half, Nikola Jokic (39 points) and Devin Booker (35 points) put on a show, often exchanging baskets. But Chris Paul left for Phoenix with a groin injury, and no one but Booker could hit an outside shot.
Jamal Murray was the star of Game 1 and the dud of Game 2, shooting 3-of-15 (0-for-9 from three) for 10 points. But Jokic had the hot hand throughout the night, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was 4-for-4 from three with three huge makes in the fourth quarter.
In fact, KCP made the two threes to start the fourth quarter to take Denver from a 73-70 deficit to a 76-73 lead, which they never relinquished.
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