The Boston Celtics on Saturday defeated the Philadelphia 76ers with a three-point shot at the end of a game between two of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.
With that, the Massachusets team maintains the leadership of the conference and opens four games of advantage over the Sixers.
At home, at the Wells Fargo Center, the Sixers were looking to close the distance to the East leader.
Then, the Philadelphia team entered with force and even opened nine points ahead in the first quarter. However, Derrick White and Robert Williams scored five in a row and brought the Celtics back into the game.
The visitors opened up five ahead, but, inspired, Joel Embiid returned the advantage to his team. The pivot went into the break with 20 points and left the Sixers six ahead.
The return to the third quarter brought an inattentive Celtics. James Harden’s three-pointer gave the Sixers a 15-1 lead. After a break from Joe Mazzulla, Boston regained focus and took the lead with a triple ball from Tatum.
The final 12 minutes of the classic had promise and did not disappoint. With just over six minutes to go, Jaylen Brown, on a layup, left the Celtics ten ahead. Then, Embiid scored 10 of 12 points for the 76ers to put the team back in front.
Boston took the lead back, but with two free throws, the center tied it with 11 seconds to go.
There shone the star of Tatum who, even out of the blue, converted the winning ball. Embiid still hit, from a long way off, but the timer had already run out.
“I wish I would’ve shot it sooner, but as I turned, I saw [Celtics guard] Derrick White there, so I couldn’t really get it off. So I had to go back to my right side story of my life,” Embiid said after the game.
In the night’s other games, Raptors, Hornets, Pacens, Knicks, Grizzlies and Jazz also won their matches.
