Tuesday night likely felt all too familiar for Boston sports fans. For the third time in less than two weeks – and for the second time involving the Celtics – they had to watch one of their teams put together an effort well short of worthy for a Game 5 at TD Garden. It also may have felt familiar given the star of the game has been giving the Celtics fits all season.
Once again, league MVP Joel Embiid proved to be a dominant force, as the led the Sixers past the Celtics in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference Semifinal series on Tuesday night at TD Garden. Behind Embiid’s effort, the Sixers are now one game away from beating the Celtics and advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals, with two chances to pick up that win.
Embiid scored 33 points in this game, his most in a regulation game this postseason and second most overall behind his 34 points in Game 4. His offensive performance wasn’t just a matter of repeatedly getting to the free throw line either – he shot 11 free throws in this game (making 10), his second-fewest in a game this series. He was 10-of-23 from the floor and 3-of-7 from deep.
