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The Philadelphia 76ers advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals after a 109-100 Game 7 win over the Boston Celtics at TD Garden, completing a 3-1 series comeback. Head coach Nick Nurse pointed to defense as the defining factor, saying, “we just guarded the ball really well.”
Nurse also explained the late-series adjustments that helped Philadelphia close out the matchup. “I’ve been saying this a lot, and it wasn’t nearly as good tonight as it’s been in the last about three games, but we just guarded the ball really well,” he said.
Joel Embiid’s ability to play through discomfort was central to the win, with Nurse detailing his impact across the floor. “Yeah, I mean I think the amount of games is still pretty low, right? And these are super intense, pretty quick comebacks, you know, every other day,” Nurse said. “He was doing everything he could to stay in the game.”
Nurse also highlighted Embiid’s broader influence beyond scoring. “Obviously we ran a lot of stuff through him. Did just enough,” he said. “Still think he’s got a lot of shots that can go in, but he’s directing traffic and making good passes and all that stuff.”
On the glass, Nurse emphasized a key improvement late in the series. “I’m most impressed with his rebounding. His defensive rebounding and blocking out, he really has done a good job in the last couple games with that,” he said.
Philadelphia’s response to Boston’s momentum swings also drew attention from the head coach. “It’s really good for us to go through that and respond to it. It’s good to have that experience,” Nurse said. “It’s going to be like that in the playoffs.”
He added that communication was difficult in a hostile environment. “You just have to play through it. But I thought we handled it just enough,” Nurse said. “It’s really good for us to experience it.”
Tyrese Maxey’s late-game scoring bursts also shifted the rhythm of the contest. “Yeah, it was great. Obviously they were very timely,” Nurse said. “He did it maybe three in a row… those were huge because we were turning into kind of a walk-it-up slugfest.”
Rookie VJ Edgecombe provided another key lift, particularly on defense. “Yeah, obviously he was great,” Nurse said. “But most importantly, he kind of came out of the halftime saying I got White… and a lot of that was VJ.”
Nurse also acknowledged tactical changes that helped slow Boston’s offense late. “We’ve got to get them in half court offense,” he said. “We just finally did… we were just kind of saying, man, whoever’s in front of you, take them.”
Looking ahead, Nurse emphasized trust in his top rotation despite heavy minutes. “I like to have my best players on the floor,” he said. “If we don’t win, we got the whole summer to recover from being tired.”
Philadelphia now shifts to a second-round matchup against the New York Knicks, carrying momentum from a Game 7 performance defined by defense, rebounding, and late-game execution.
