Embiid pours in 52 to pace the Sixers over Boston

Joel Embiid pretty much won a game for the 76ers all by himself. For coach Doc Rivers, yes, the 76ers got a needed win against a potential playoff foe, but Embiid might have won himself so much more.

“The MVP race is over,” Rivers said.

Embiid strengthened his bid for the award with 52 points and 13 rebounds, and the NBA scoring leader carried Philadelphia to a 103-101 win over the Boston Celtics on Tuesday night.

In a game with a playoff vibe, this one came down to the end, as Jayson Tatum’s tying jumper fell short at the horn.

P.J. Tucker gave Embiid and the Sixers the help they needed when he made three late 3-pointers that turned a one-point deficit into a 101-95 lead. Derrick White buried a 3 with 2 seconds left that pulled Boston to 103-101 and hushed a crowd that had just bellowed “MVP! MVP!” chants.

Embiid was whistled for an offensive foul, the latest in a string of late-game breakdowns that almost gave away the game.

“We were trying to give them the game back. We really tried,” Rivers said.

But they hung on and beat the Celtics for the first time in four tries this season. They can thank the All-Star center that punctuated the victory with a vicious two-handed slam late in the game that sent the crowd into a frenzy.

Embiid made 20 of 25 shots from the floor and 12 of 13 free throws en route to his ninth game of the season with at least 40 points and 10 rebounds. Embiid scored 50 points for the third time this season.

“When he gets it going like that, no one can stop him,” Tucker said.

James Harden had 20 points and 10 assists.

White scored 26 points and Tatum had 19. The Celtics fell to 9-4 this season without Jaylen Brown, the team’s secondleading scorer who got the night off with a back injury.

“Our offense, we just weren’t elite tonight,” coach Joe Mazzulla said. “When your offense

CHRIS SZAGOLA - THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Joel Embiid dunks after getting past Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum, left, during the second half Tuesday. Embiid had 52points to lead the Sixers to a 103-101victory.