Joel Embiid on Thursday scored a season-high 38 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as the Philadelphia 76ers ended the Boston Celtics perfect home record with a 115-109 win.
Embiid had a clutch block and drained five of six free throws all within the final 26 seconds as the Sixers withstood a late Boston charge. He scored 16 points in the final quarter.
Tobias Harris added 23 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, while Mike Scott scored 15 on five three-pointers as the 76ers won their eighth game in the past nine contests.
Photo: AFP
The Celtics had won 10 straight to start the season and coming into the game were one of just three undefeated teams at home. Philadelphia and Miami are the undefeated teams left.
Kemba Walker had 29 points, while Enes Kanter with 20 and Daniel Theis with 16 powered the offense of the Celtics, who have lost two games in as many nights.
The Celtics trailed by nine points with 2 minutes, 25 seconds left in the fourth before mounting a charge. They cut the Sixers lead to 108-106 on a Kanter dunk with 41 seconds to go.
Ben Simmons hit a pair of free throws, but a Jayson Tatum drained a three-pointer to cut the Celtics deficit to one, 110-109, with 27 seconds left.
Embiid was fouled and made one of two free throws then added two more free throws to clinch the victory.
Boston led 55-47 late in the first half, but Philadelphia went on a 9-4 run to cut the deficit to three points at halftime.
Former Celtic Al Horford sat out the game with a left knee and hamstring injury. He received a standing ovation when he was shown on the scoreboard and he acknowledged the crowd with a wave.
Horford spent three seasons with Boston before signing with Philadelphia as a free agent.
In Mexico City, Luka Doncic delivered his second career 40-point triple-double as the Dallas Mavericks rolled over the Detroit Pistons 122-111.
The 20-year-old dazzled the crowd of 20,060 at the Arena Ciudad de Mexico with 41 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists to become the first NBA player younger than 21 with two career 40-point triple-doubles. LeBron James had one.
The second-year Maverick also registered his fourth career 40-point game.
Doncic’s triple-double was also the 16th of his career, with his 41 points coming up one shy of his personal record in a triple-double, which he set last month against San Antonio.
Doncic had eight of his points during a 4 minute, 44 second stretch bridging the second and third quarters in which the Mavericks turned a 58-51 deficit into a 71-58 lead.
Dallas, who won their sixth straight, led by as many as 24 points in the third quarter before cruising the rest of the way.
Elsewhere, the Cleveland Cavaliers outlasted the San Antonio Spurs to win 117-109 in overtime, while the Denver Nuggets overpowered the Portland Trail Blazers 114-99.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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