Jayson Tatum, playoff hero, once again.
The Boston Celtics superstar, who played just 16 regular-season games after missing most of the season with a ruptured Achilles tendon, had a three-point lead and the ball in his hands. He rose up over Philadelphia 76ers center Adem Bona for a dagger 3-pointer, delivering an eventual 108-100 victory that gave his Celtics a 2-1 series lead.
“I’ve been here before,” Tatum told the broadcast in the game’s aftermath.
Tatum scored 11 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter of a back-and-forth game. Jaylen Brown also added 25 points for the Celtics. Game 4 is schedule for Sunday.
Now, for some takeaways.
Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown close it out
For a stretch midway through the fourth quarter, Brown took the game over, and that was the push the Celtics needed in what was a one-possession game at the time.
After a goaltending violation gave Boston an 86-85 advantage, Brown picked off a Tyrese Maxey pass and found Derrick White for a streaking transition layup. Brown scored the next eight points by himself, pushing Boston’s advantage to 96-92 with 3:14 remaining.
That’s when Tatum took over. He scored or assisted on Boston’s next 10 points, even as Philadelphia continue making baskets on the other end. A Tatum 3-pointer gave the Celtics a 100-96 edge with 1:57 left. He found Payton Pritchard for Boston’s next 3 and a 103-98 advantage. Then, after a pair of Kelly Oubre Jr. free throws made it a one-possession once again, Tatum rose over Bona for the dagger and a 106-100 lead.
Boston makes its 3s
It’s a make-or-miss league, they say. Make shots, and win. Miss them, and lose. And Boston has made shots more often than Philadelphia all season, which is why the Celtics are the second seed, and why they were heavily favored to win this series.
Well, the Celtics didn’t make shots in Game 2, missing 37-of-50 3-point attempts. Only once all season did they miss more. Meanwhile, the Sixers made their shots in Game 2, converting 19-of-39 3-point attempts, one of their three best shooting performances of the season. That was the difference in Philadelphia’s 111-97 victory.
Maybe it was anomalous. After all, the Celtics nearly equaled their output from all of Game 2 in the first half of Game 3, ripping 12 triples, staking themselves to a 54-47 advantage in the opening 24 minutes. Eight different Celtics converted 3-pointers. Five of them made multiple 3s.
In the end, Boston finished 20-of-47 from deep, far better than their Game 2 effort.
And still the 76ers were in the game, even though they couldn’t match Boston’s firepower from deep. Philadelphia finished 12-of-35 in this one and lost. Go figure.
Defending Tyrese Maxey
You can’t let Maxey beat you with his scoring and let him beat you with his passing. But that’s exactly what he wants to do in the pick-and-roll — either score or create a bucket for one of his teammates. And it doesn’t matter what coverage you give him.
Drop in coverage, and he’ll pull up over you. Get too close, and he’ll blow by you. Hedge with a second defender, and he’ll fire off a pass so quick it’ll reach a shooter before you can recover. Either commit two to slowing him, leaving open shooters, or play him man-to-man, praying he misses one on one. These are your difficult choices.
So, the Celtics opted to let Maxey beat them one on one. And he nearly did, scoring 31 points, albeit on 12-of-31 shooting. Boston will take that math every time, especially if it means they can stay home on Philadelphia’s shooters. That they did, and Sixers not named Maxey or Paul George finished 3-of-15 from beyond the arc.
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