Celtics drain 29 threes

Boston opened its first-round series by tying the NBA postseason record with 29 made three-pointers in a 123-91 Game 1 rout of Philadelphia on April 19. (nba.com, espn.com) The Celtics hit 16 threes in that opener, according to ESPN’s box score, and the series page on NBA.com lists Boston’s Game 1 win as the start of a matchup that was even again two nights later. (espn.com, nba.com) That 29-made mark sits at the top of the league’s single-game standard for team three-point shooting, a record Boston also matched in the regular season on April 10 against New Orleans. (espn.com, nba.com) Boston came into the series as the East’s No. 2 seed after a 56-26 regular season, while Philadelphia entered as the No. 7 seed at 45-37. The pairing put one of the league’s highest-volume three-point offenses against a Sixers team trying to survive Boston’s spacing at TD Garden. (espn.com, nba.com) Philadelphia answered fast in Game 2, winning 111-97 in Boston on April 21 to tie the series 1-1 before it shifted south for Game 3 on Friday, April 24. (espn.com, nba.com) V.J. Edgecombe scored 30 points with 10 rebounds in that Game 2 win, and Tyrese Maxey added 29 points and nine assists. ESPN’s recap said Edgecombe became the first rookie since Tim Duncan in 1998 to post at least 30 points and 10 rebounds in a playoff game. (espn.com, espn.com) The split changed the tone of the series. Boston’s record-tying shooting night still stands, but the first two games also showed how quickly a matchup can swing when one team wins the three-point math in one game and the other controls the next. (nba.com, espn.com) So the number attached to this series is still 29 — but after two games, the more important number is 1-1. (nba.com, espn.com)