Tirese Makey and VJ Edgecombe cool the Celtics

The duel between the two main uncertainties in the Eastern Conference turned in favor of the Sixers. Without Paul George and with transparent Joel Embiid for his return, Philadelphia kept dominating Boston (116-117). Tyrese McKay and a newcomer VJ Edgecombe better than responded, with XXXL performance.

XXSL, as the beginning of the novice match. The third pick of the last draft is absolutely not shy about his first official minutes of his career. The Sixers point guard trades off his outside skills and his athleticism wonderfully to attack the rim.

The Bahamian is impressive, scoring more than half of his team’s points in the first quarter (14 of the Sixers’ 26). This is necessary to compensate for a rusty Joel Embiid being dominated by Xavier Tillman, who countered the Cameroonian’s mid-range effort before beating him to score on the counter-attack.

Boston is in the matchup by taking advantage of the opponent’s defensive retreat. But the Celtics can’t find the target from long range. After two successes from Sam Hauser and Jalen Brown to lead by five points, Joe Mazzula’s men went on to go 0/9 from three.

Tyrese Maxey scored 19 points in the second quarter

After Edgecombe in the first quarter, Tyrese Maxey caught fire in the second and almost single-handedly brought Philly back. The Sixers leader has full confidence and scored 19 points in that period! Nick Nurse’s men return to the dressing room with a deserved six-point lead.

No doubt shaken by Joe Mazzula on vacation, Boston returns with better intentions. The Celtics are picking up the pace and finding better positions from long range against a defense that is sometimes apathetic in transition. Derrick White leads his team on both ends of the floor, and the Sixers are completely taken by the throat. They conceded 21-4, and on a new basket on the counter by Anferni Simmons, the home team took an eleven-point lead (72-61). Philadelphia was completely overwhelmed and outplayed, going 15/17 free throws for Boston in the third quarter alone. Only VJ Edgecombe can be matched in terms of intensity.

Novak is fantastic, and Tirese McKay follows him. The Sixers, without Joel Embiid, relied on the activity of the incredible duo Dominic Barlow – Jabari Walker for almost the entire fourth quarter. And it works! Philadelphia got back to within two points for the first time, before a good pass from Neemias Cueta pushed them back nine lengths. But the momentum remains on the side of the Sixers, more aggressive at the end of the game.

Kelly Oubre’s free throw skills and contributions are key, while Jaylen Brown misses several attempts. Boston still believes it after VJ Edgecombe misses two shots with 8.5 seconds left, but Peyton Pritchard misses twice for the game-winning shot.

WHAT TO REMEMBER

– Tirese Mackey – VJ Edgecombe is dynamite! Without a true interior anchor point, the Sixers relied on their backcourt to sustain the offense. Tyrese Maxey had a great shooting night (40 points on 13/24 including 7/9 from distance) and continued to pressure the Celtics with his first shots. As for VJ Edgecombe, his 34 points dusted off the 64-year-old mark: not since Wilt Chamberlain has a rookie been so prolific in scoring in his first NBA game!

– Joel Embiid still has work to do. Seeing Joel Embiid in gear for the restart is already a small victory. But the Sixers center is still light years away from his physical level to make an impact. Slow, often out of time, he finished 2 points at 1/9, something unheard of for him since 2020.

– replied Boston. The Celtics didn’t hesitate in the first game of the season without Jayson Tatum. But at 11/43 on 3-pointers, it’s hard to get much hope despite 25 points from Jaylen Brown and Derrick White. Derrick White and Payton Pritchard combined for a notable 5/20 on 3-pointers, which stands out compared to the 12/22 of the Tirese Makey – VJ Edgecombe tandem in practice.

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