I'm not talking about the Celtics' 27-point win over the Chicago Bulls last night, although that was certainly a part of it. For the Celtics to win East Group C of the NBA Cup In-Season Tournament, they not only had to win that game, but needed to win in a very specific way, and the miracle was that it all came together exactly as needed.
Going into last night's game, both the Celtics and the Brooklyn Nets trailed the Orlando Magic by one game in Group C. Because Orlando had beaten the Celtics on Friday, the Magic owned the head-to-head tiebreaker. The only way the Celts could advance to the next stage was through a three-way tie, where the total point differential is the tiebreaker.
Orlando was idle last night, so to create a three-way tie, the Celtics needed to beat the Bulls and they needed the Nets to win their scheduled game against the Toronto Raptors. But to boost their point differential, Boston needed to win by more than 22 points and they needed the Nets to win their game but by no more than 8 points less than whatever was Boston's margin of victory.
Boston beat the Bulls by 27 points, covering the 22 points they needed. But the Nets had to beat the Toronto Raptors by no more than 19 points (Boston's 27 points less eight). The Nets won, 115-103, a 12-point differential, and as a result Boston won Group C and will play in the bracket stage for the NBA Cup.
What needed to happen, happened, and it happened in exactly the way Boston needed it to. It's a miracle.
Game 1 of the Quarterfinals will be Monday night, Dec. 4, against the 9-7 Indiana Pacers. Brooklyn, which beat Orlando earlier this month, will play Milwaukee on Tuesday.
Whether or not what we experienced last night was an According-to-Hoyle miracle is insignificant. What is significant is that we felt the touch of God, and God is apparently a leprechaun.
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