Paul George scores 36 as Celtics beat 76ers 123-101 in Jaylen Brown's return

Paul George leads Boston's road win

Boston beat the 76ers 123-101 on Tuesday, 10 November, in Philadelphia, and moved into first place in the Eastern Conference. Paul George led the Celtics with 36 points, six three-pointers and five rebounds, scoring 14 straight points in the fourth quarter. Boston led by as many as 16 in the first half and was ahead 62-51 at halftime. The 76ers cut the margin in the third quarter, when Dean Wade's three-pointer tied the game at 76 with 4:02 left in that period. Boston then pulled away, and George's fourth three of the night made it 100-82. The win was Boston's ninth in 10 games, lifting the Celtics to 9-2 while the 76ers fell to 9-3.

Paul George36

Tyrese Maxey24

Jayson Tatum21

Payton Pritchard18

Joel Embiid16

Jaylen Brown13

LeBron James11

Paul George

36 points

Tyrese Maxey

24 points

Jayson Tatum

21 points

Payton Pritchard

18 points

Joel Embiid

16 points

Jaylen Brown

13 points

LeBron James

11 points

Data from the article text

Brown and Tatum's first meeting since the trade

Jaylen Brown faced Boston for the first time since the 76ers acquired him over the summer, sending George and four first-round picks to the Celtics in the deal. Brown picked up two fouls in the first quarter and was whistled for his fourth early in the second half, finishing with 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting. Tatum scored 21 points and exchanged a hug with LeBron James before the opening tip, but Brown ignored a pregame tap from Tatum. Later Tatum threw down a dunk over James, who finished with 11 points, eight rebounds and five assists. The New York Times reports James now needs 11 more assists to pass Jason Kidd for third place on the NBA's all-time assists list.

Sixers coach Nick Nurse framed the night as one fans had marked on the calendar before the season.

“I think this is probably one, maybe the one (game) that people were circling in the summertime when the schedule came out.”

Sixers' injury scare and the schedule ahead

Joel Embiid landed awkwardly on a missed layup and hit the court, then ran down it gingerly before the half ended. The New York Times reports he overcame an apparent ankle injury to finish with 16 points and six rebounds. Tyrese Maxey led Philadelphia with 24 points. Embiid had missed 27 of 30 three-pointers before the game, and the Sixers have declined to play him in back-to-back games because of his long-running health problems. Philadelphia hosts Toronto on Thursday, 12 November, while Boston completes a back-to-back at Toronto.

Other results from the same night

In the rest of the NBA schedule, Oklahoma lost 103-123 at Portland, where Damian Lillard scored 25 points. The Miami Heat beat the Utah Jazz with 30 points from Giannis Antetokounmpo, and the reigning champion New York Knicks beat the Milwaukee Bucks 117-85.