Philadelphia 76ers' Joel Embiid (21) beats Boston Celtics' Jaylen Brown (7) to the ball during the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game in Boston, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
Philadelphia 76ers' Joel Embiid (21) beats Boston Celtics' Jaylen Brown (7) to the ball during the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game in Boston, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer) Credit: Michael Dwyer

Boston — Joel Embiid celebrated his first NBA All-Star selection with 26 points and matched a career best with 16 rebounds, leading the Philadelphia 76ers to an 89-80 win over the Boston Celtics on Thursday night.

Dario Saric scored 16 for Philadelphia, which won for the sixth time in seven games and ended a three-game losing streak against Boston. T.J. McConnell had 15 points — all in the second half.

Boston played without All-Star guard Kyrie Irving, who rested a sore left shoulder. Al Horford and Marcus Morris each scored 14 points.

After winning seven in a row, Boston has lost two straight.

The Celtics had no answer for Embiid, who was 10 for 19 from the floor and 6 of 7 at the foul line. He also had six assists and blocked two shots.

Embiid scored 10 in the third quarter and McConnell had nine points in the period, helping the Sixers pull away.

Marcus Smart scored 13 and Jaylen Brown had 12 points for Boston, which committed 19 turnovers and was outrebounded 41-31 by the Sixers.

Boston and Philadelphia also played last Thursday in London, with the Celtics winning 114-103.

The 76ers led this one 71-53 after three. McConnell made a 3-pointer with 9:58 to go for a 79-59 lead — the largest of the game. Jayson Tatum’s 3-pointer with 2:01 remaining trimmed Philadelphia’s lead to 86-79, but Boston’s rally fizzles from there.

Notes: Irving made the All-Star game for the fifth time. … The Celtics honored Jo Jo White, a two-time NBA champion who played 10 seasons for Boston, with a video tribute and a No. 10 draped over his regular seat. White died on Tuesday at age 71.

Cavaliers 104, Magic 103

Cleveland — Isaiah Thomas made two free throws with 11 seconds left and Cleveland came up with a defensive stop in the frantic final seconds after blowing a 23-point lead.

After Thomas made his shots, Orlando’s Elfrid Payton missed a contested layup with three seconds left. The officials ruled there was an inadvertent whistle and held a jump ball at midcourt.

Magic forward Aaron Gordon grabbed the toss and sank an apparent game-winning 45-footer as the horn sounded and Cleveland’s crowds shrieked in disbelief. But Gordon committed a jump-ball violation with the move and Cleveland then only had to inbound the ball to come away with a win that shouldn’t have been so difficult.

LeBron James closed in on 30,000 career points, Thomas scored 21 and the Cavs snapped a four-game losing skid — but not out of a January funk.

James scored 16 and now needs 25 to become the seventh player in NBA history to reach 30,000. He’ll likely reach the plateau on Saturday, when Cleveland hosts Oklahoma City.

The Cavs were rolling to a rare, easy win before they went cold from the outside and were outscored 33-17 in the third quarter by the Magic, who have dropped 17 of 19.

Cleveland went 1 for 17 on 3-pointers in the second half.