Celtics storm to early lead, roll past 76ers in series opener

Jaylen Brown scored a game-high 26 points and Jayson Tatum added 25 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists to lead the Boston Celtics to a 123-91 victory over the visiting Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday in Game 1 of an Eastern Conference first-round playoff series.

Sam Hauser made 4 of 6 attempts from 3-point range and added 12 points for second-seeded Boston, which never trailed in the game.

Seventh-seeded Philadelphia received 21 points with eight assists from Tyrese Maxey and 17 from Paul George. Kelly Oubre finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.

The 76ers shot 38.9% from the floor, including 4 of 23 (17.4%) from 3-point territory. No Philadelphia player made more than one 3-pointer.

Philadelphia also committed 15 turnovers, which helped Boston hold a 22-3 edge in points off turnovers.

Boston center Neemias Queta was in foul trouble for much of the game, but scored 13 points in 15 minutes of playing time.

Boston had an early double-digit lead after a Tatum jumper ended an 11-1 spurt that put the Celtics up 17-7. Philadelphia was 6 of 21 (28.6%) from the field -- 1 of 9 from 3-point range -- in the opening quarter and trailed 33-18 after the opening 12 minutes.

The Celtics stretched their lead to 23 points in the second quarter and held a 64-46 halftime lead. Tatum scored 21 of his 25 points in the opening half.

After the 76ers trimmed their deficit to 15 midway through the third, Boston went on a 10-0 to extend its lead 83-58. The Celtics led by as many as 26 later in the quarter and had a 95-71 advantage entering the fourth. Brown scored 16 of his 26 points in the third.

The Celtics held a 107-75 lead following a Payton Pritchard layup with 9:03 to play. Boston led by as many as 35 later in the fourth.

Game 2 in the series will be Tuesday night in Boston.

--Field Level Media