Jayson Tatum’s historic Game 7 lifts Celtics into conference finals rematch with Heat

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Plus: The real MVP falters for yet another second-round exit in 112-88 loss

Jayson Tatum continues to shut a lot of doubters up this postseason, showing on Sunday just how much of a killer-instinct he has. Boston had a three-point lead at the half, relying on Tatum for nearly half their points and assists. Tatum was having an MVP-type performance against the officially-named MVP Joel Embiid, who had just 13 points at the time.

In the third quarter, Tatum outscored the Sixers by himself, 17-10, which included four threes on 71.4% shooting overall. Embiid wilted in the same moment, going scoreless on four shots in nine and a half minutes with two turnovers. All this included the turning point in the game, a near 11-minute stretch of just three Sixers points, a 28-3 run all in all.

Tatum added nine more points in eight fourth-quarter minutes to cement his 51-point (17-28 FG) performance as the highest-scoring game 7 in NBA history, a few weeks after Steph Curry set the record with 50 against Sacramento.

While the Celtics can now look forward to their fifth Eastern Conference Finals in the last seven years, matching up against Jimmy Butler and the Heat, the Sixers — who maybe should still have Butler given hindsight — find themselves saying things like “I can’t win alone” after their fifth second-round exit in the last six years.