BOSTON — The Celtics’ season has come to an abrupt and unexpected end.
Playing without Jayson Tatum, who was ruled out two hours before tipoff with left knee stiffness, the C’s lost 109-100 to the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 of their first-round playoff series at TD Garden on Saturday night.
Boston trailed by as many as 18 points and was down 12 entering the fourth quarter before mounting a furious comeback to cut the deficit to one. But the C’s missed 10 consecutive shots within the final five minutes, allowing Philly to pull away for the victory.
This is the first time in franchise history the Celtics have lost a seven-game playoff series after leading 3-1, and the first time since 1982 that Philadelphia has won a postseason series vs. Boston.
Check out our live blog for a full recap of Game 7.
