The Most Astounding 76ers Stats We Could Come Up With Off A Game 7 Win In Boston

The most astounding 76ers stats we could come up with off a Game 7 win in Boston originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

It was a historic night for the 76ers at TD Garden, where the 76ers won a series for the first time ever after trailing three games to one and the Celtics lost a series for the first time ever after leading three games to one.

What a game! What a performance! What a series! What a bunch of stats! 

The 76ers eliminated the Celtics with a 109-100 win in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference First-Round series.

With able assistance from Stathead, let’s take a look at some of the numbers behind this game and the series!

THEY COULDN’T LOSE IN BOSTON: Before Game 5, the 76ers had won three playoff games in Boston in a 44-year span since 1983. They were 3-17 in 20 road playoff games in Boston since the 1982 Eastern Conference Finals, when they beat the Celtics twice at Boston Garden on the way to winning the series, four games to three. Now they’ve won three games in Boston in the span of 12 days. This is the first time the 76ers have ever won three straight playoff games in Boston. It’s also the first time they’ve ever won three straight road games in a postseason series.

GAME 7 RARITIES: The 76ers hadn’t won a Game 7 anywhere since 2001, when they beat the Bucks 108-91 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals at the First Union Center. They hadn’t won a Game 7 on the road in 44 years, since their only previous postseason road Game 7 win – at Boston Garden 120-106 in the 1982 Eastern Conference Finals. They were 1-10 all-time in road Game 7s before Saturday and 6-12 overall. 

AND HE JUST HAD SURGERY: A few weeks after undergoing an appendectomy, Joel Embiid had 112 points, 29 assists, 48 rebounds and 7 blocks in the four games he played in the series. He’s the first 76er in 59 year with at least 112 points, 48 rebounds and 29 assists in any four-game span in the postseason since Wilt Chamberlain in 1967 (112 points, 106 rebounds, 44 assists). Embiid is the first player in NBA history to average 28 points, 12 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 2.0 blocks in an Eastern or Western Conference First-Round series and only the second player with those averages in any series. Giannis Antetokounmpo did it in the Bucks’ 2022 Western Conference Semifinals, also against the Celtics.

TYRESE MAXEY IS INSANE: Maxey became the first 76er ever with back-to-back playoff games against the Celtics with 30 points and five assists and only the sixth player ever with consecutive 30-point, five-assist games in the postseason in Boston, joining some elite company in five current or future Hall of Famers: LeBron James, Giannis, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jerry West and Oscar Robertson.

V.J. EDGECOMBE IS ALSO INSANE: V.J. Edgecombe’s 23 points are the most ever by a player 20 years old or younger in a Game 7 against the Celtics and most by any rookie in 64 years. The previous high by a 20-year-ol was Derrick Rose’s 18 in Game 7 of the Bulls’ 2009 Eastern Conference 1^st-round series in Boston. The last rookie with 23 points in a Game 7 in Boston was Tom Meschery of the Philadelphia Warriors in the 1962 Eastern Division finals. It’s also the most points ever by a 76ers rookie in a Game 7. Maurice Cheeks had 20 in Game 7 of the 76ers’ 1979 Eastern Conference Semifinal series against the Spurs in San Antonio. With 30 points in Game 2 in Boston and 23 Saturday, Edgecombe became the third rookie ever and first in 45 years with two 23-point games in Boston in a playoff series. The last to do it was the 76ers’ Andrew Toney in 1981. Two Philadelphia Warriors also did it – Wilt in 1960 and Meschery in 1962. 

ASTONISHING DEFENSE: In the last three games of the series, the 76ers limited the Celtics to 40.4, 41.9 and 39.8 shooting from the field. This is only the second time in Celtics history they’ve shot worse than 42 percent in three straight home playoff games but the first time they’ve ever done it in the same series. In 2018, they did it over two series against the Pacers and Cavs. In the last three games of the series, the 76ers held the Celtics to 28, 29 and 27 percent from 3. This is the first time since a 2015 series against the Cavs that the Celtics have shot below 30 percent from 3 in three straight postseason games.

IT’S NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE: The 76ers won the series after losing Game 1 and Game 4 by 32 points. They are the first team in NBA history to win a playoff series after losing two games by at least 32 points. Only six other teams won two games in a series by at least 30 points and they all lost that series.