Tatum’s Game 7-record 51 points power Celtics into Eastern Conference finals

Jayson Tatum scored 51 points – the most in a Game 7 in NBA history – and the Boston Celtics beat the Philadelphia 76ers 112-88 on Sunday to advance to the Eastern Conference finals for the second straight year.

One game after missing 14 of his first 15 shots only to awaken in the fourth quarter, Tatum got off to the fast start the Celtics needed. He scored 25 in the back-and-forth first half and 17 more in Boston’s 33-10 third quarter that turned a three-point lead into a runaway.

The Celtics, who lost to the Golden State Warriors in the NBA finals last year, will face the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals, which begin on Wednesday in Boston.

Tatum added 13 rebounds and Jaylen Brown scored 25 points for the Celtics, who rallied from a 3-2 deficit in the best-of-seven series to keep alive their hopes for an unprecedented 18th NBA championship. Tatum was subbed out of the game with three minutes left to a standing ovation from the crowd, which soon broke out in a “Beat the Heat!” chant.

Newly crowned NBA MVP Joel Embiid scored 15 points on 5-for-18 shooting, and Tobias Harris scored 19 for Philadelphia. The Sixers lost in the conference semi-finals for the third straight year, and the fifth time in six seasons; they have not gotten any further since reaching the NBA finals in 2001.

Tatum started 0 for 6 in a Game 5 loss and missed 14 of his first 15 shots overall from the floor in Game 6 before erupting for four 3-pointers in the final 4:14 to force the decisive seventh game.

He picked up where he left off, scoring Boston’s first basket and 11 points in the first quarter, 14 more in the second and outscoring the Sixers on his own, 17-10, in the third. The 33-10 edge in the third was the most lopsided quarter in