Payton Pritchard can't quite explain Celtics struggles at home after Game 5 loss

BOSTON — Home is where you're supposed to be comfortable. But perhaps the Boston Celtics have been a little too relaxed at TD Garden, as they suffered their second home loss this postseason on Tuesday night in a 113-97 defeat at the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers. Following the disappointing Game 5, which initially was an opportunity to eliminate the Sixers, the Celtics are 1-2 at home in their first-round playoff series. These struggles aren't exactly new, either. Boston was 4-3 at home over the course of the 2025 NBA Playoffs and even on its victorious title run in 2024 that featured just 3 losses in total, 2 of those were at TD Garden. "I don’t know," point guard Payton Pritchard replied when asked to elaborate on the lackluster home playoff record. "We’re going to have to figure that out. I can’t really put my finger on it, but honestly it feels like we've been better on the road, and we don't want that to necessarily be the case. We want to be dominant at home and on the road. So (we've) definitely got to get that fixed." While finding a specific source for this trouble may be difficult, it could come down to the Celtics being too at ease within the comforts of home. They played with effort for much of Game 5, yet the offense collapsed down the stretch and sloppy mistakes — including avoidable turnovers and ill-timed fouls — ruined any late momentum. "I don't know if it's a home thing," Pritchard said in a quiet locker room. "We've just got to be more dominant in certain situations." Looking for a sillier explanation? Maybe TD Garden is cursed. Just look at the Boston Bruins, who share an arena with the Celtics. They're 2-10 at home in the postseason since April 19, 2023, and have yet to win a hockey game on Causeway Street in their current first-round playoff series against the Buffalo Sabres. The B's will have to for Game 6 on Friday night in order to stay alive against the Sabres and force a Game 7 back in upstate New York. Regardless of the NHL and superstitions, the Celtics need to be better if they want to close out the scrappy, seventh-seeded Sixers in Game 6 on Thursday at the Xfinity Mobile Arena. Pritchard and company have been in enough critical playoff situations to understand that. "We don’t have time to dwell on it," Pritchard said of the double-digit defeat. "We've got to go to Philly tomorrow and get ready for Thursday.” Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on: Blue Wire:  iTunes:  YouTube:  *This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Payton Pritchard couldn't fully explain Celtics losses at TD Garden*