Two of the NBA’s hottest teams squared off Tuesday night as the Boston Celtics visited the Philadelphia 76ers.
Adding to the intrigue was the first meeting between former Celtics teammates Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown since Brown joined Philadelphia in the offseason.
Round 1 went to St. Louisan Tatum and the Celtics as Boston rolled to a 123-101 victory over the 76ers on their home court.
The former Chaminade College Prep standout finished with 21 points, six rebounds and four assists while Brown contributed 13 points and four rebounds for Philadelphia.
In the weeks leading up to the game, Brown took several public shots at his former teammate. The tension carried over to the opening tip when Brown appeared to ignore Tatum’s attempt at a greeting in the jump circle.
Tatum quickly set the tone by scoring 11 points in the first quarter. Later, he brought the crowd to life with a thunderous drive and dunk over LeBron James.
The rest of the evening belonged to veteran forward Paul George, who led Boston with a game-high 36 points. Acquired in the deal that sent Brown to Philadelphia, George connected on six of 11 shots from 3-point range and delivered 14 points in the fourth quarter as the Celtics pulled away.
Payton Pritchard added 18 points off the bench for Boston while Tyrese Maxey led Philadelphia with 24 points.
The Celtics used a strong second half to take control and improve to 9-2, moving into sole possession of first place in the Eastern Conference. The 76ers fell to 9-3.
The teams will meet again Jan. 21 in Boston.