James Harden lifts 76ers over Celtics with 45 points, late 3 - ESPN

BOSTON — As one second after another ticked off the clock, Philadelphia 76ers star James Harden continued to eye both the basket and his defender, Boston Celtics center Al Horford, with the Sixers trailing by one in the closing seconds of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals Monday night.

And, like he has countless times before in his Hall of Fame career, Harden saw the moment when he could create the separation necessary to get off his patented stepback jumper — and took it.

When the ball softly dropped through the net for the final time for Harden on the night — tying his playoff career high of 45 points in the process — teammate Joel Embiid celebrated wildly on the sidelines, Harden and the 76ers having stolen back home court with a thrilling 119-115 victory without him.

«I haven't felt one of those zones in a minute,» Harden said with a smile afterward. «You know what I mean? Just to be aggressive and shoot the basketball and do what I want.

»That felt really good.… I'm capable of doing it, so it felt good. It felt good to make those shots, to give ourselves a chance."

Few believed Philadelphia would have much of a chance once Embiid, dealing with a sprained LCL in his right knee suffered April 20, was officially ruled out roughly 90 minutes before Game 1 tipped off.

But few also would have believed that Harden was going to turn in perhaps the greatest performance of his playoff career. He came out and hit his opening five shots, setting the tone for Philadelphia on a night when the game threatened to get away from the 76ers early thanks to Boston going 17-for-20 from the field in the first quarter alone.

That the game was still within striking distance was almost solely due to Harden.

«I thought that he had