Paul George scored 36 points against his former team to highlight the Boston Celtics’ 123-101 road victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night.
George, who was traded to the Celtics in the Jaylen Brown blockbuster in July, finished 6 of 11 from outside the arc. He scored 14 points in the fourth quarter to help the visitors win comfortably.
The anticipated matchup between Jayson Tatum and Brown began with a chilly reception as Brown barely acknowledged Tatum’s pregame greeting. Brown was cold thereafter as well, finishing with 13 points and a game-high four turnovers, while Tatum supplied 21 points.
Boston, which made 22 of 49 3-point attempts (44.9%), has the best record in the Eastern Conference at 9-2, just ahead of the 76ers (9-3). Payton Pritchard (18 points) and Sam Hauser (12) each knocked down four 3-pointers for the Celtics.
Tyrese Maxey scored 24 points to pace the Sixers, who were facing the Celtics for the first time since rallying from a 3-1 deficit to win the teams’ first-round playoff series last spring. Joel Embiid (16 points on 2-of-9 shooting) and LeBron James (11 points on 4-of-12 shooting) both had quiet nights for Philadelphia.
Tatum scored 11 first-quarter points as Boston led 30-23 after the opening 12 minutes.
The Celtics made four 3-pointers in the first quarter and then drained five more in the second session. George knocked down two as part of a 13-point second quarter that helped Boston carry a 62-51 lead into the locker room.
Boston heated up even more in the third quarter, draining 7 of 13 3-tries, including two apiece by Tatum and Pritchard. Philadelphia also shot well in the period, connecting on 57.9% of its shots from the field and 5 of 10 from beyond the arc.
Maxey’s 3-pointer tied it at 79-79 with 3:19 left in the third before the Celtics outscored the Sixers 12-3 to end the frame. Pritchard, Hauser, Tatum and Baylor Scheierman each hit a 3-pointer during that burst as the visitors carried a 91-82 lead into the fourth.
Pritchard opened the fourth with a pair of 3-pointers before George scored 14 points in a four-minute stretch as the lead ballooned to 111-87.
The Celtics led by as many as 29 points down the stretch.
