The Celtics conquered two forces on Friday night: the 76ers and the chaos that ensued in the second half of Boston’s first NBA Cup matchup.
With consecutive wins in their back pocket, the underdog Celtics carried their momentum to the City of Brotherly Love, this time laying it all on the line on the most frenzied stage they’ve faced yet. Boston built a first-half lead as large as 24 points over Philadelphia, only to watch Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid, who combined for 46 points, bring the 76ers within arm’s reach of surpassing their longtime Eastern Conference rival in the teams’ second meeting in nine days.
Once the smoke cleared, the Celtics let out a long, pent-up sigh of relief after edging the 76ers 109-108 to secure Boston’s third straight victory. The rollercoaster ride put the Celtics to the test in a multitude of ways, turning what could have been a seamless march to the finish into a grueling trial with real regular-season stakes.
“I thought once they tied the game and we brought it back to seven (points) at the end of the third, we regained our poise,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said. “But at the same time, I like that we operated in the chaos. I thought that third quarter we managed it. I thought that Philly obviously went on a good run there, and the fourth quarter was good. It was fun.”
Boston, again, relied on its unproven newcomers to embrace the blue-collar brand of basketball that Mazzulla wants to define the team’s locker room. Rebounding, previously the kryptonite throughout Boston’s 0-3 season-opening slump, has gradually transformed from a weakness into an advantage, helping keep the Celtics in the win column. Boston outrebounded Philadelphia 45-40, marking the third straight game in which the C’s controlled the boards, both offensively and defensively.
Rookie forward Hugo González sustained the defensive intensity that has consistently won over the Celtics and their fans, tallying 5 rebounds, 2 steals, 5 points, and 2 assists in just 15 minutes off the bench.
González dove to the floor, baseball-slide style, on a save attempt in the final seconds of the third quarter, and moments later took a hard fall while contesting a fastbreak layup from Philadelphia’s Quentin Grimes, which he successfully missed. In the fourth quarter, González’s menacing defense continued, as the 19-year-old stole the ball from the Sixers after they failed to advance it past half court following an inbound.
Just six games into the season, González has already reached the point where he can be expected to cast a dark cloud over any opponent’s offense on a nightly basis for the Celtics — an expectation shared by the 2025 first-round pick himself.
“If I see somebody that is going to try to make it in our basket, I will go 100 times with it. I don’t care the result,” González said. “I’m not allowing — or we’re not allowing — easy baskets. If I got the opportunity to hustle that and if it’s in my hands, I’m going to do it 100 times.”
Exactly a year ago, González walked in a different pair of shoes. The feisty energy bunny clawing for minutes off the bench as a fresh-faced member of Real Madrid’s professional team in Spain. Those efforts are paying off in Boston, just months after he officially joined the Celtics as one of the lesser-known prospects from the 2025 NBA Draft class.
“At the end of the day, you just gotta be ready to be called upon at any moment and deliver,” Mazzulla said. “And it just creates that expectation and that mindset. So we’re able to be flexible in that and kind of take advantage of the different types of guys that we have. Also, most of those guys are fresh, so I thought Hugo made some big plays in the second half.”
Philadelphia pushed Boston to the very edge in the closing moments of the fourth quarter.
In the final 11.6 seconds of regulation, the Celtics committed a costly turnover, giving the 76ers a chance at a go-ahead basket. Boston, with zero timeouts, successfully defended Maxey’s lead-taking floater attempt, but the last-minute dramatics didn’t end there. Josh Minott drew a foul shortly after securing a critical rebound and missed both free throws, giving Philadelphia yet another chance.
However, the 76ers fumbled at the goal line again, failing to even get a shot off to conclude the Boston-Philly thriller in a decidedly ugly, ugly manner.
Four of Boston’s first six games have gone down to the wire, each decided by six points or less. That’s the reality of this 2025-26 roster. Some nights, it’ll be maddening to watch. Other nights, it gives players like González and Minott a chance to step into the spotlight for a team and fanbase that likely wouldn’t have seen them otherwise.
“I think it’s more fun,” Jaylen Brown explained. “I think it’s more fun as a team atmosphere because any given night you can be a contributor to winning. I know it gets hard. I’ve been in those positions where you want your name to get called and it just doesn’t, and it piles up game after game after game. Mentally, it can be tough. But each and every night, depending on the matchup, playing 10-to-12 guys, you could have your opportunity on the floor. So I think it’s more fun that way for everybody.”
