Sixers vs Celtics: James Harden scores 45 points to pull the Philadelphia past Boston without Joel Embiid in Game 1

(CNN) Expectations were low for the Philadelphia 76ers without MVP candidate Joel Embiid, but under James Harden’s leadership, the Sixers secured a huge 119-115 in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference best-of-seven semifinal game. Victory against the Boston Celtics.

There have always been question marks surrounding Harden’s performances in the playoffs. Critics have indicated that the 10-time All-Star doesn’t produce when it counts, but Harden delivered a classic performance in this important game.

On the night of the Met Gala, the Guardian made a stunning fashion statement off court – and simply had to show up on the hardwood to match his effort. Harden did just that, dropping 45 points on 17-of-30 shooting and losing seven shots from deep at a 50% rate in a performance reminiscent of his MVP days with the Houston Rockets.

Harden stole the show before the game on the night of the Met Gala.

Buoyed by the support of the home crowd at TD Garden, the Celtics got off to a strong start. Jaylen Brown scored 14 points in the first quarter and Boston took a 38-31 lead after the first quarter.

Sixers fans could have thought the worst without the back-to-back scoring champion of the NBA at this point in the game, but this Philadelphia team is made of more rigorous material than previous iterations.

Quarter by quarter, Doc Rivers’ team scraped back the Celtics’ lead and the scores were even at 87-87 going into the final 12 minutes.

Both teams traded buckets in the deciding quarter, with neither side giving their opponent a significant advantage, but thanks to two free throws from Jayson Tatum, the Celtics went a point clear with 26 seconds left.

The Sixers then worked the ball to “The Beard,” and Harden looked for a mismatch with the Celtics’ Al Horford.

The 33-year-old’s team-mates fled the scene, allowing Harden to isolate Horford for a 1-on-1 at the top of the key. The Iso king worked patiently at the Celtics center before rolling off a typical step-back three to give the Sixers the lead in the clutch – ultimately winning the game for his side in the process.

“The Beard” racked up 45 points in a performance reminiscent of the Houston vigil days.

Speaking to reporters after the game, Harden opened up about his take on the match-up.

“We didn’t come into the game expecting to lose. We came here to win,” Harden explained. “If [Embiid] come back or not, we’ll be ready to go.”

It wasn’t just Harden who delivered for the Sixers in Embiid’s absence, but Tyrese Maxey, Tobias Harris and De’Anthony Melton also augmented when needed with 26, 18 and 17 points, respectively.

After the game, Sixers head coach Rivers spoke about his team’s group performance.

“That’s the difference between this year’s team and last year’s team. We have a lot of street fighters,” Rivers said. “If we could get to the fourth quarter, we would win the game. That’s how we felt.”

The Sixers ran in the absence of MVP candidate Embiid.

Elsewhere, the Denver Nuggets went 2-0 up against the Phoenix Suns and took control of the Western Conference Semifinals.

In a relatively weak affair, reigning back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic had 39 points, 16 rebounds and five assists as the Nuggets sealed a 97-87 win.

The Suns will be concerned about the health of point guard Chris Paul, who had to leave the game early, as they seek a comeback on their home court.