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Boston Celtics vs Philadelphia 76ers |
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|---|---|---|
2018 NBA Playoffs, Game 2, April 4 |
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| TD Garden, Boston, MA | ||
| Boston Celtics | Philadelphia 76ers | |
| 108 | SCORE | 103 |
| 22 | Q1 | 31 |
| 29 | Q2 | 25 |
| 28 | Q3 | 19 |
| 29 | Q4 | 28 |
After taking Game 1, the Boston Celtics will look to hold their home-court advantage against a Philadelphia 76ers side with plenty of work to do. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage of Game 2 from 10:30am (AEST).
The Celtics won every quarter of the series opener to take a 16-point victory and a 1-0 series lead. Holding onto home court is a must for Boston, who are going to potentially struggle on the road, especially without Kyrie Irving, who has been rubbed out for the rest of the season.
His absence leaves the men in green with a significant mountain to climb, but they did exactly that in the first round of the ,playoffs with a seven-game victory over a solid Milwaukee Bucks outfit.
The extra rest the 76ers had after a five-game win over the Heat may have hurt them in Game 1, with the side looking rusty, but it should help their chances during the second half of the series.
The young Sixers need to overcome a gritty Boston defence though, with the visitors held to just 42 per cent from the field in Game 1. If they can’t pick up that shooting percentage, or at least replicate it for Boston, it’ll be tough to stay level on the scoreboard.
Philadelphia were actually dominant in the paint during the first game, having an advantage of 16 rebounds by the end of the game, but it didn’t translate to points because of their poor shooting.
While Joel Embiid (31), Ben Simmons (18) and JJ Redick (20) all dropped plenty of points at more than 50 per cent, they got very little in the way of back up and with Boston playing out of their skin, they didn’t have the answers to compete with them for 48 minutes.
For the Celtics to maintain their dominance, there is going to be a heavy reliance on Al Horford to again dominate the paint after he pulled down 26 points and seven rebounds in the first game. Jayson Tatum and Terry Rozier also had big games, but they need more from centre Aaron Baynes in an attempt to control Embiid.
Prediction
The Celtics, still at home, seem to be a distance ahead. They played out of their skin in Game 1, and I expect the 76ers to improve as they work into the series, but Philadelphia will be under the pump heading back home for Game 3.
Celtics by 5.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of Game 2 from 10:30am (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.