James Harden Drops 45 Points in Game 1 to Stun Celtics, NBA Fans

The Beard went into TD Garden and came away with a 1–0 series lead.

The 76ers entered TD Garden on Monday night facing an uphill climb against the Celtics with MVP favorite Joel Embiid out with injury.

Philadelphia fans, have no fear: The Beard is here.

James Harden rose to the occasion and turned in a star performance, erupting for 45 points to stun the Boston crowd and lead the Sixers to a 119–115 Game 1 win. Harden made clutch plays throughout the second half, though none was bigger than his step-back, go-ahead three-pointer that gave Philadelphia a two-point lead with eight seconds remaining.

The scoring outburst tied a playoff career high for Harden, who made 17 of his 30 field goal attempts while shooting 7-for-14 on threes. He spearheaded a strong offensive showing from 76ers that enabled them to outscore the Celtics despite Boston shooting 58.7% from the floor as a team.

Harden became the fifth player in 76ers history to score 45 or more points in a playoff game. The others are Allen Iverson, Lee Shaffer, Wilt Chamberlain and Billy Cunningham.

The basketball world was stunned by Harden’s postseason brilliance, particularly considering the absence of Embiid. Check out the best social media reactions of the bunch below.