Have the Boston Celtics Ever Lost a Game 7 at Home?

The Boston Celtics have played an NBA record 36 Game 7s. Their Game 7 matchup against the Miami Heat on Monday will be their 28th Game 7 on their home court, with Boston going 22-5 in those games. In other words, when they have reached a Game 7 in a series as the higher seed, the Boston Celtics have won that game over 81% of the time.

This record will boost the Celtics's confidence as they attempt to finish off the unlikeliest of comebacks after falling down 3-0 to start the series. Their star players Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have appeared in six Game 7s together, winning five.

With what promises to be an exciting clash looming, let's take a look at the five instances in which the Boston Celtics lost a Game 7 at home.

---

#1, 1973 Eastern Conference finals vs. New York Knicks

Incredibly, the Boston Celtics had not lost a Game 7 in the first 25 years of their existence. In that time they had appeared in 10 Game 7s, winning all of them. Those 10 occurred in a 12-year span from 1957 to 1969, an era which saw the Bill Russell-led Celtics hoist the NBA title in all but one of those years.

So, when the Knicks and Celtics faced off at the Boston Garden on April 13, 1973, with an NBA finals berth on the line, the Knicks were looking to do the impossible. And do the impossible they did.

The Celtics had finished the 1972-73 regular season with 68 wins, 11 games ahead of the Knicks. Their lineup featured three All-Stars, including reigning MVP Dave Cowens. This didn't prove to be enough as the Knicks handed the Celtics their first Game 7 loss, on the backs of a 25-point, 10-rebound performance from Walt Frazier.

---

#2, 1982 Eastern Conference finals vs. Philadelphia 76ers

The Boston Celtics had won a 91-90 thriller Game 7 against the Philadelphia 76ers in the previous season's Eastern Conference finals. The Sixers returned the favor the next year. Interestingly, this was the last time that the same two teams faced off in a Game 7 in the conference finals in consecutive years. The Heat-Celtics matchup on Monday will be the next.

Unlike the previous year, this was not a close game. Thirty-four points from Andrey Toney and 29 points from Julius Erving carried the Sixers over the finish line in a 120-106 win.

---

#3, 2005 Eastern Conference first round vs. Indiana Pacers

Indiana Pacers vs. Boston Celtics

The 1990s and early-to-mid 2000s were rough years for the Boston Celtics. Between 1988 and 2005, the Celtics reached the conference finals only once. For a franchise accustomed to being title contenders, this was rock bottom.

The 2004-05 season provided some hope for a resurgence as the Celtics clinched the No. 3 seed, tied for their best finish during that timespan. This hope was quickly extinguished as the Indiana Pacers blew out the Celtics 97-70 in Game 7 at the TD Garden in the first round. Only two Celtics players managed to score in double figures in what remains their largest margin of defeat in a Game 7.

---

#4, 2009 Eastern Conference semifinals vs. Orlando Magic

Orlando Magic vs. Boston Celtics

After ending the franchise's 20-plus-year title drought the previous year, the Boston Celtics' Big Three of Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett seemed primed for another title run in 2009. But when Garnett suffered a knee injury, that put a spoke in their wheel.

Even though Garnett missed a good chunk of the regular reason, the Celtics still still finished the regular season with a 62-20 record and clinched the No. 2 seed in the East. But Garnett's absence proved costly in their second round matchup against the Orlando Magic.

The Magic boasted the NBA's best defense and 3-point shooting that season. In Game 7, Pierce struggled, shooting just 4 of 13, and the Celtics as a team shot just 25% from 3-point range. As the Celtics defense focused attention on Magic star player Dwight Howard, that led to a lot of open looks for the Magic's shooters. They finished shooting nearly 62% from beyond the arc in a 101-82 blowout.

---

#5, 2018 Eastern Conference finals vs. Cleveland Cavaliers

Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Boston Celtics: Game 7

The Boston Celtics had a Cinderella run in the 2018 NBA playoffs. Despite missing stars Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward in the playoffs, the Celtics reached the Eastern Conference finals. There, they ran into the Cleveland Cavaliers led by LeBron James, who was having a transcendent run that postseason.

Game 7 remained a close affair, with the Celtics trailing by just five points with 1:20 left. But things quickly went downhill from there. James made a couple of clutch plays to ice the game, and the Cavaliers won 87-79.

This remains the only loss the Boston Celtics have suffered in a Game 7 in the Tatum-Brown era.

Will the Miami Heat hand them their second loss on Monday? Or will the Celtics complete an unprecedented comeback? Tune in to Game 7 to find out.