Celtics Beat 76ers 123-101 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Behind Paul George's 36
Paul George scored 36 points against his former team as Boston won the first meeting between Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown as opponents, pulling away in the fourth quarter in Philadelphia.
Key points
- The Boston Celtics beat the Philadelphia 76ers 123-101 in Philadelphia on Tuesday night, in the first regular season meeting between Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown as opponents.
- Boston led from the first quarter.
- The 76ers opened the second half with a push.
The Boston Celtics beat the Philadelphia 76ers 123-101 in Philadelphia on Tuesday night, in the first regular season meeting between Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown as opponents. Paul George, facing his former team, scored 36 points and took over the fourth quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Boston led from the first quarter. The Celtics shot 8 of 10 from the floor in the opening minutes, led 30-23 after one quarter and 62-51 at halftime. George had 17 points at the break on 63.6 percent shooting. Tatum had 13 points in the first half. Tyrese Maxey led Philadelphia with 12 points at halftime, and Joel Embiid had 9 points, all from free throws, after going 0 of 6 from the field.
Philadelphia ties it, Boston answers
The 76ers opened the second half with a push. A 7-0 run cut the Boston lead to 69-63, and Dean Wade tied the game at 76 with a long three-pointer with about four minutes left in the third quarter. Boston answered with its own three-point exchange. Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser, Tatum and Baylor Scheierman all hit from distance, and the Celtics took a 91-82 lead into the fourth quarter.
The fourth quarter belonged to George. Pritchard hit two early three-pointers, George added a pullup three to make it 100-82, and a turnaround jumper and a layup from George pushed the lead to 105-82 with about eight minutes left. Two more George three-pointers made it 111-87 with under six minutes to play, and Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse pulled his starters soon after. Boston finished 22 of 49 from three-point range, with eight players hitting at least one three.
The Jays, by the numbers
George finished with 36 points on 14 of 22 shooting, including 6 of 11 from three-point range, with five rebounds. Tatum finished with 21 points, six rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Pritchard scored 18 points and Hauser added 12 for Boston, which improved to 9-2.
Brown, traded from Boston to Philadelphia in the offseason deal that sent George to the Celtics, scored 13 points with five rebounds and two assists in his first game against his former team. Maxey led the 76ers with 24 points on 8 of 12 shooting. Embiid scored 16 points and LeBron James scored 11 for Philadelphia, which fell to 9-3. The 76ers shot 28 free throws to Boston's five and still lost by 22.
The teams meet three more times this season. The next meeting is January 21 at TD Garden in Boston. Boston plays at Toronto on Wednesday night to close a four-game road trip.
Timeline
- Nov 10, 2026Jaylen Brown faces Boston for the first time since his offseason trade to Philadelphia, in the first of four regular season meetings between the 76ers and the Celtics.
- Nov 10, 2026Boston leads 62-51 at halftime in Philadelphia, with Paul George scoring 17 first half points and Jayson Tatum adding 13.
- Nov 10, 2026Philadelphia ties the game at 76 in the third quarter, but Boston pulls away in the fourth and wins 123-101. The next meeting is January 21 in Boston.