The Philadelphia 76ers and the Boston Celtics went to a Game 7, which saw the Sixers advance with a win in Boston. That exciting first-round series picked up plenty of viewers along the way.
The final game between Philadelphia and Boston averaged 11 million viewers between NBC and Peacock, according to the NBA. This made it the most-watched first-round Game 7 in history and the most-watched first-round game overall in the last 27 years.
The NBA added that the entire first round of this year’s playoffs was the most-viewed first round in the last 33 years, averaging four million viewers.
Boston took the first game of the series, but Philadelphia bounced back in Game 2 to even the slate. The Celtics then won back-to-back games to reach the infamous 3-1 series lead. It looked like the series was over after Game 4, as Boston was on the road but still secured the impressive 128-96 win, its second 32-point win of the series.
The 76ers responded by winning three straight games, two of which came on the Celtics’ home court. Game 7 saw them emerge victorious 109-100, capping off a historic comeback. It is just the 14th time in NBA history that a team has come back from a 3-1 deficit in a best-of-seven series.
Before their historic win, Philadelphia had an NBA record 0-18 mark when trailing 3-1 in a series, while Boston was 32-0 when leading 3-1. The 76ers had lost six consecutive playoff series against the Celtics before their 2026 first-round win.
Philadelphia advanced to take on the New York Knicks in the conference semifinals. The Knicks won Game 1 of that series with a 137-98 blowout on Monday.
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