What did we do to deserve this? Celtics are stunned at home by 76ers less than 24 hours after record-setting Bruins were bounced at the Garden. – The Boston Globe

I imply, what did Boston do to deserve this?

Our former house of champions has turn out to be Causeway Road’s Home of Ache.

The house-for-the-summer Bruins misplaced solely 4 “actual” video games right here in 2022-23, then dropped three straight at house to a Panthers workforce that produced the Seventeenth-best document within the NHL.

Now the Celtics — by attrition one of the best workforce nonetheless standing in a league riddled with sidelined star expertise — dropped Sport 1 at house lower than every week after shedding a possible closeout house recreation to the forever-500 Hawks.

Mercy.

Boston is formally traumatized. This was imagined to be the spring of back-to-back duck boat parades. It was going to be B’s and C’s and a June pageant of confetti.

Now we’re starting to marvel about some new (Tom Brady?) curse. It’s as if an occult hand has turned all of the sports activities karma away from New England.

After the Sunday hockey horror present, people stuffed the Backyard assuming the Celtics would make the world proper once more. Given all of the dangerous issues which have occurred to NBA elites (Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tyler Herro, Jimmy Butler, Kawhi Leonard all wounded), the Celtics are clearly probably the most gifted workforce nonetheless standing. Their path has been cleared. The Bucks had been taken out. The Warmth are hobbled with accidents to 3 key gamers. The West is extensive open.

When the 76ers introduced that Embiid, who sprained his proper knee in Sport 3 of Philadelphia’s sweep of the Nets, was formally out for Sport 1, we seemed ahead to the Celts feasting on backup heart Paul Reed. This was imagined to be like Greg Kite filling in for Robert Parish. The Sixers should not deep even with Embiid, and with out him, figured to be a simple opponent.

Improper, Iavaroni Breath.

“Embiid being out tonight, as a lot you don’t wish to say it wasn’t an element, I believe it was,” Al Horford mentioned. “We have now to be higher.”

Reed performed 37 high quality minutes and ripped 4 crucial free throws when the Celtics had been melting right into a puddle down the stretch.

This was a ridiculous recreation on many ranges.

James Harden (keep in mind him?) shot the Sixers to an early lead (19-13), however there was no stopping a Celtics tsunami as Boston made 14 of its first 15 pictures (most of them dunks) and led, 38-31 after one. The Celts shot a shocking 85 p.c (17 of 20) and had 26 factors within the paint within the quarter. Neither workforce took a free throw, which tells you every little thing you might want to know in regards to the compete stage of the groups.

We didn’t see a foul shot till the ultimate minute of the primary half when Jayson Tatum went to the road for a pair. Hideous. Within the good outdated days of Celtics-Sixers, Jim Loscutoff and Cedric Maxwell would have been in foul bother earlier than the opening tip.

Boston went forward by as many as 12 within the second, but it surely ought to have been extra. A 66-63 halftime lead grew to become an 87-87 tie after three.

Then Tatum (39 factors) and Jaylen Brown (23) turtled within the fourth (every made solely three buckets after halftime) and watched Tyrese Maxey and Harden (45 factors) take over the sport.

Boston led, 113-110, with lower than a minute left (identical to the Bruins led Florida, 3-2, with lower than a minute left Sunday). When Marcus Sensible fouled Reed with 57.1 seconds left, Reed drained each to make it 113-112.

Then got here the epic meltdown. A loopy possession resulted in Malcolm Brogdon (because the shot clock expired) throwing the ball on to Maxey, Fred Brown model (look it up), leading to a breakaway layup by Maxey. After a few Tatum free throws put Boston again forward, Harden pantsed Horford, draining a 26-foot pullup to make it 117-115 with 8.4 seconds remaining.

It’s powerful to explain what the Celtics did after a timeout. It was not Joe Mazzulla’s best hour. Brogdon inbounded to Sensible, who panicked, and tried to dump the ball off to Tatum. It was kicked round and Tatum fouled Reed, who calmly ripped one other pair. Ballgame.

“The setting is totally different right here,’’ mentioned 76ers coach Doc Rivers, a person who is aware of. “It’s an incredible setting.’’

Certainly.

Nevertheless it was once a spot the place the house groups gained and the followers left pleased.

Dan Shaughnessy is a Globe columnist. He may be reached at daniel.shaughnessy@globe.com. Observe him on Twitter @dan_shaughnessy.