76ers Struggle to Find Their Shot in Blowout Loss to Celtics in Game 1

The game was basically over before it started, but the Philadelphia 76ers didn’t help themselves out in their opener to the 2026 NBA Playoffs.

Following a fantastic Play-In victory over the Orlando Magic, the 76ers travelled out to the TD Garden for a matchup against the team’s biggest rival, the Boston Celtics. The Celtics and the 76ers have gone through heated battles in the postseason over the past decade, meeting up three times, with their most recent matchup coming back during the 2023 Eastern Conference Semifinals.

However, coming into this series, many believed that it would be a quick and dominant victory for the Celtics, and based on Game 1 of this series, those people may be right. The 76ers were blown out by Boston 123-91, with the 76ers trailing by double-digits for nearly the entire game and at one point trailing by 32.

It was a dominant game for the Celtics, who made it seem like a scrimmage game between the two teams, not the opening game of a playoff series. Boston forced 15 turnovers from Philadelphia, scoring 22 points off their turnovers, while shooting 13-for-37 from three. Jayson Tatum led the way for the Celtics, totaling 25 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists, while Jaylen Brown added 26 points.

For the 76ers, Tyrese Maxey led the way, scoring with 21 points, while Paul George added 17. The team as a whole really didn’t shoot well at all, going 4-for-22 (18%) from three, and 35-for-88 (40%) from the field. The 76ers now move to 10-24 vs the Celtics in playoff games dating back to 1985.

As the game tipped off, it didn’t take long for the Celtics to get some offense going, not from their stars, though, but Sam Hauser and Neemias Queta, who scored nine of the first 11 points from Boston. The 76ers’ shooting didn’t start on a good note for anyone who wasn’t named Paul George or Tyrese Maxey, as the 76ers’ first 14 points came from only those two guys.

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown eventually got their shots in, helping the Celtics grow a lead as the 76ers struggled to get any type of offense once George and Maxey began missing shots. Following free throws from Dominick Barlow, the Celtics went on a 9-2 run to close out the first quarter, led by four points from Tatum and a long three from Payton Pritchard, leading Philadelphia 33-18 after 12 minutes. In the first quarter, the 76ers shot just 1-for-9 (11.1%) from three and only 5-for-20 (25%) from the field.

Quarter two kicked off similarly to the first, with the Celtics’ backups scoring the first couple of points before Brown and Queta got the Celtics rolling once again. Up and down the court the Celtics went, hitting threes when they needed, but also dominating in the paint against Adem Bona and Andre Drummond. Both centers were playing in place of injured center Joel Embiid, and right away the Celtics targeted them, putting two early fouls on them.

Trailing by 20 with six minutes remaining in the first half, Tatum checked back into the game and continued to knock down big bucket after big bucket. Thankfully for the 76ers, VJ Edgecombe, in his playoff debut, went on a solo run of his own, scoring eight of the 76ers’ next 10 points. The final bucket from Edgecombe finally cut the deficit back up to 20, making it 64-46. Unfortunately for the 76ers, the 18-point deficit was the team’s largest halftime deficit in a playoff series vs the Celtics in 44 years.

Out of the break, the 76ers actually got a good run going for the first time all game, with Kelly Oubre Jr. and Edgcombe each knocking down buckets, and George adding six points to make it a 15-point game. However, instantly, the Celtics went on a 10-0 run thanks to three-pointers from Brown and Nikola Vucevic, and mid-range jumpers from Tatum, to jump out to their largest lead of the game.

The remainder of the third quarter was much the same: whenever the 76ers got something going, the Celtics instantly responded. When it was all said and done, the final eight minutes of the third saw the Celtics go on a 22-13 run, taking a 95-71 lead into the final quarter.

With 12 minutes left to play, the Celtics continued to hold the line on the 76ers throughout the final quarter. Maxey and George could only do so much with Tatum hitting more shots, and then dishing out threes to Hauser to grow the lead to 32.

Following a three from Quentin Grimes, Nick Nurse began emptying his bench with his team still trailing by 30 points and the game out of reach. The final eight minutes of the game saw both teams basically getting in cardio, as the Celtics blew out the 76ers 123-91, taking a 1-0 lead in the series. The 31-point win was the largest playoff opening win in the Celtics franchise history.

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