The Boston Celtics appeared poised to slam the door on the Philadelphia 76ers' season midway through the third quarter of Game 5. Leading by 13 points with the Sixers struggling to find their rhythm and the TD Garden crowd roaring, it felt like only a few more buckets stood between the Celtics and a series-clinching victory.

But then, the wheels came off. In a stunning fourth-quarter collapse, Boston managed just 11 points in the final frame while being outscored by 17 points. The result was a disappointing 113-97 loss on Tuesday night, sending the series back to Philadelphia for Game 6. For a team that prides itself on home-court advantage, this loss highlighted a troubling pattern.

"I don't know," guard Payton Pritchard admitted when asked about the team's home struggles. "We're going to have to figure that out. Can't really put my finger on it, but honestly, it feels like we've been better on the road. We don't want that to necessarily be the case. We want to be dominant at home and on the road. Definitely gotta get that fixed."

This marks the Celtics' second home loss in these playoffs, dropping them to 1-2 at TD Garden in the postseason. The pattern isn't new—it's a recurring theme that has haunted Boston in recent playoff runs. Last year's second-round exit to the Knicks saw them lose both Games 1 and 2 at home, complete with blown leads and fourth-quarter meltdowns. Even the 2023 playoffs featured similar struggles, though the 2024 championship run was a notable exception, as the Celtics posted a dominant 16-3 record and never faced elimination.

Tuesday's loss was a golden opportunity squandered. The Celtics had the Sixers on the brink of elimination, but instead of delivering the knockout punch, they let their opponent hang around. As Pritchard put it, "We were just a little lackadaisical at times when we could have put them away. We just messed around with the game and when you have a team on the brink of elimination, you really got to put your foot on the gas and finish it."

Now, Boston faces a must-win Game 6 in Philadelphia, where they'll need to rediscover the road warrior mentality that has served them well in the past. If they want to keep their title hopes alive, they'll need to prove they can close out a series—no matter where the game is played.