The Philadelphia 76ers held a 22-point lead over the Boston Celtics in the first half of Game 2 and looked well on their way towards a blowout victory to tie the series up at 1-1. Instead, the Sixers took the foot off the gas pedal, defensive ace Marcus Smart put the clamps down on rookie Ben Simmons, and the shorthanded Celtics came back to win the game and take a shocking 2-0 lead over the Sixers.

Simmons finished with just one point, five rebounds, seven assists, and five turnovers in 31 minutes of action. He also finished without a made field goal for the first time in his young NBA career. Understandably frustrated, Simmons called the performance the worst game of his career.

According to Marc Narducci of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Simmons got a call from a former Sixers great after the game, the beloved Allen Iverson.

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“I heard he wanted to talk to me so I got on the phone with him and he gave me words of encouragement,” Simmons said.

And those words were?

“He said play the game I know how to play,” Simmons said. “That is just second nature to me.”

In his first season with the Sixers, Simmons averaged 15.8 points, 8.1 rebounds, 8.2 assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game 54.5 percent shooting. Celtics coach Brad Stevens has done an excellent job neutralizing his scoring and limiting his playmaking ability in the first two games of the series. The Sixers, however, are headed home to their very raucous crowd desperate for a Sixers victory. Game 3 is on Saturday afternoon at 5PM EST.