At one point, it seemed like the Philadelphia 76ers were well on their way to booking their place in the Eastern Conference Finals. This was especially after holding down Jayson Tatum to just a single point in the first half of Thursday's Game 6 matchup against the Boston Celtics. Somehow, though, the Celtics clawed their way back to escape with a stunning 95-86 victory against the Sixers to force a Game 7 in Boston.
This game was for the Sixers to lose — and they did just that. Unsurprisingly, Philly fans were in shambles all over Twitter after watching their team squander a golden opportunity:
Nobody has squandered more opportunities than Doc Rivers led teams but my god this is up there, how do you not win a game that Tatum plays like this on your home court.
— RB Insiders (RBSPN) (@RyB_311) May 12, 2023
Sixers lose, Game 7 is on Sunday. pic.twitter.com/0BCMDoC8rh
— Barstool Philly (@BarstoolPhilly) May 12, 2023
Sixers offense died in the 4th, stopped going through Embiid and missed open looks
This team will never get out of the 2nd round
— Aidan Doc🧸 (@AidanDoc_) May 12, 2023
Sixers have one point in the last four and a half minutes or so. Absolutely horrific, inexcusable offensive performance down the stretch.
— Adam Aaronson (@SixersAdam) May 12, 2023




It's every year.
— Sixers Nation (@PHLSixersNation) May 12, 2023
90.5 offensive rating for the Sixers tonight. That is tied for their worst offensive performance all season.
— Rich Hofmann (@rich_hofmann) May 12, 2023
It's safe to say that Philadelphia is not happy right now — and understandably so. This game was not a blowout by any means, and the Celtics did not come back from a seemingly insurmountable lead. In fact, Boston even had a lead heading into halftime in spite of Tatum's awful opening performance in the first two quarters of play.
However, there's no denying that the Sixers had a tremendous opportunity to secure a home victory in Game 6, thereby putting an end to Boston's season. They failed miserably, though, and instead of now preparing for an East Finals matchup against either the Miami Heat or the New York Knicks, the Sixers will now need to head on to Boston for a winner-take-all Game 7. The odds won't be in Philly's favor, but you can be sure that the Sixers faithful will be holding out hope that their team is able to deliver come Sunday.