4 takeaways as Celtics beat 76ers in Game 3 while James Harden draws boos

The Celtics took command of the Eastern Conference Semifinals on Friday night with a 114-102 win over the 76ers in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead.

Jayson Tatum led six different Celtics in double figures with 27 points, including seven straight points in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter. Jaylen Brown added 23 points despite dealing with foul trouble while Al Horford shook off his shooting slump in the first two games of the series to knock down five 3s including a pivotal one in the fourth quarter.

Joel Embiid looked far better than Game 2 scoring a team-high 28 points but he got little help from his co-star James Harden who heard boos from the Philadelphia crowd after going 3-of-13 from the field with five turnovers.

The Celtics now take a 2-1 series lead with a pivotal Game 4 looming Sunday afternoon at Wells Fargo Center.

Here are four takeaways from the Celtics’ in Game 3.

James Harden has a nightmare game: The Celtics saw the best of Harden in Game 1 of the series but he has come back to earth in a hurry over the last two contests. After a dreadful Game 2 (2-of-12 shooting), Harden looked like a shell of himself in Game 3, going a miserable 1-of-7 from the field while turning the ball over five times. It didn’t get much better in the second half as Harden regularly turned down shots which kept the Sixers offense from gaining any rhythm. Jaylen Brown has done a terrific job extending his ball pressure on Harden and the Celtics shading multiple defenders his way on drives is helping to keep him out of rhythm. After drinking from the fountain of youth in Game 1, the Celtics have found success in giving them their full attention.

Jaylen Brown shakes off slow start to carry Celtics offense before foul trouble: Brown made a huge impact defensively in Game 2 and he carried over that momentum to the offensive end in Game 3. After missing his first three shots, Brown knocked down eight of his next 12 with all of his damage coming from inside the arc as he got to the paint at will against the 76ers wing defenders and also made tough shots in the midrange. With improved rim decisions developing as this postseason wears on, Brown is also getting to the free throw line more while helping the offensive load on a night Boton’s supporting cast was not posting big numbers like Game 2. Ultimately, Brown was forced to sit out most of the fourth quarter with foul trouble but his teammates picked up the offense to help close things out.

Celtics win turnover battle: Poor Boston offense turned into plenty of Sixers easy looks in Game 1 and that’s a department the team continued to clean up in Game 3. The visitors had just five turnovers in the first half alone and kept their turnover number to eight through three quarters with improved rim reads against Joel Embiid and smarter ball movement against the Sixers trapping and zone defense. Meanwhile, Boston used their own pressure defense to force the Sixers stars into mistakes which led to easy transition bucks all night to make up for an underwhelming half court offense.

Rob Williams leaves with elbow injury: The Celtics big man was protecting a major energy lift in his 16 minutes by tallying three blocks and hitting the offensive glass hard. However, one dive after a loose ball in front of the Celtics bench ended his night as he appeared to land awkwardly on his elbow and stayed down with team trainers for a couple minutes afterwards before heading to the locker room. Al Horford replaced him and Williams eventually returned to the bench with his elbow wrapped. His status for Game 4 will be worth watching.

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