Joel Embiid hits last second game-winning three in OT to give Philadelphia 76ers series lead over Toronto Raptors
By Matias Grez, CNN
Joel Embiid hit a clutch three pointer with less than a second remaining to seal a 104-101 overtime win for the Philadelphia 76ers, extending their first round series lead over the Toronto Raptors to 3-0 in the NBA Eastern Conference playoffs.
The MVP candidate received an inbound pass from Danny Green before hitting a tough turnaround triple over Fred VanVleet to stun the crowd inside the Scotiabank Arena into silence.
In a post-match interview with NBA TV, Embiid called it “the best” shot of his career.
It’s the 144th time that a team has taken a 3-0 lead in the playoffs, a best-of-seven series, and no team in playoff history has ever come back from that deficit.
Embiid finished with 33 points and 13 rebounds and had to play the whole of overtime without star teammate James Harden, who fouled out at the end of the fourth quarter.
Young guard Tyrese Maxey added another 19 points, while Tobias Harris finished with an 11-point, 12-rebound double-double.
Raptors’ OG Anunoby finished with a team-high 26 to go along with Gary Trent Jr.’s 24 points.
Pascal Siakam and VanVleet, Toronto’s star players, struggled mightily back on home soil, scoring just 12 points each and shooting 37.5% and 23.1% from the field respectively.
This arena holds painful memories for Embiid and the 76ers; in the second round of the 2019 playoffs, they were stunned by Kawhi Leonard’s series clinching game-winner that sent the Raptors through to the Eastern Conference Final.
Roundup
Elsewhere, it was another miserable night for the Brooklyn Nets who threw away a 17-point lead at the Boston Celtics to lose 114-107 and go down 2-0 in their first round series.
After shooting 9-of-24 in Game One, Kevin Durant once again struggled at the TD garden and finished with 27 points while shooting a miserly 23.5% from the field.
Kyrie Irving finished with just 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting, with the Nets’ two star players combining for 1-of-17 from the field in the second half.
Jaylen Brown finished with a team high 22 for the Celtics, with Jayson Tatum notching a 19-point, 10-assist double-double.
Meanwhile, the Chicago Bulls pulled of a huge win 114-110 win at the Milwaukee Bucks to level their first round series at 1-1.
DeMar DeRozan hit a career playoff high 41 to sink the Bucks, who were led by Giannis Antetekounmpo’s 33 points and 18 rebounds.
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