V.J. Edgecombe had 30 points and 10 rebounds while playing through pain after taking a hard fall early in the game, Tyrese Maxey scored 29 points and Philadelphia beat Boston 111-97 to tie their playoff series at one game apiece.

Edgecombe connected on six of the 76ers' 19 three-pointers on Tuesday (Wednesday AEST). Maxey also had nine assists as the Sixers bounced back after getting blown out 123-91 in Game 1.

The series shifts to Philadelphia for Game 3 on Friday.

A day after being voted defensive player of the year, San Antonio star Victor Wembanyama has been placed in the NBA's concussion protocol after tumbling face-first to the court during their 106-103 home loss to Portland.

Under league guidelines, a player in the concussion protocol must have at least 48 hours of inactivity and recovery and then hit several benchmarks without symptoms before being cleared to play. A player must undergo neurological testing and receive a final clearance from a team doctor in consultation with the league's concussion protocol director.

The versatile 7-foot-4 centre was fouled by Jrue Holiday after he spun around the Trail Blazers point guard in the paint. He was not able to brace himself on the fall, and his jaw hit the court with 8:57 remaining in the second quarter.

Wembanyama had five points, four rebounds, one blocked shot and one assist in 12 minutes, while Portland's Scoot Henderson had a game-high 31 points.

San Antonio are in the playoffs for the first time since 2019 and won Game 1 of the Western Conference first-round series behind 35 points from Frenchman Wembanyama.

At TD Garden, Boston cut a seven-point deficit at the beginning of the fourth quarter to 91-89 before an 11-0 run put the 76ers back in front 102-89 with just over four minutes to play. The Celtics pulled their starters with a little more than a minute remaining.

Jaylen Brown led the hosts with 36 points, while Jayson Tatum added 19 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists.

Philadelphia were again without centre Joel Embiid as he continues to go through a strength and conditioning program following an appendectomy on April 9.