Hatred for Boston, a couple divided by fandom, and Sixers fans holding on to hope: Inside the arena at Game 3

During the Flyers’ Game 3 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins Wednesday, Xfinity Mobile Arena was covered in orange, playoff Gritty obliterated a penguin mascot, and “[Sidney] Crosby sucks” chants rang through the arena. On Friday night, that hatred of the Penguins was replaced by another longtime Philadelphia rival: the Boston Celtics.

“Boston is a great city,” said 39-year-old Media native Brian Cooney. “Don’t love the teams, but it’s a great rivalry. It always has been. But Philly is here to play.”

Throughout most of the night, fans stayed active — whether they were yelling at referees, chanting “Boston sucks,” or cheering for one of the newest members of the Eagles.

Here’s what you missed from inside the arena during the Sixers’ Game 3 loss to the Boston Celtics ...

» READ MORE: Tyrese Maxey battles, VJ Edgecombe’s learning moment, and what we learned from the Sixers’ 108-100 loss in Game 3

The last time the Sixers faced Boston in the opening round of the playoffs was in 2020, and the Celtics swept the Sixers.

This year, the Sixers assured that wouldn’t happen by winning Tuesday’s Game 2. But after splitting the first two games at TD Garden, they failed to defend their home court, falling 108-100 to the Celtics in Game 3 — and leaving Sixers fans questioning the future of the series.

“I mean, it’s the same Sixers’ woes we always see,” said 33-year-old Sixers fan Rich Glikes. “We don’t rebound. ... Tyrese Maxey, love him to death, he’s playing hero ball, jacking up shots. We don’t pass the ball around, we just rely on our key players.

“This is just the life I subscribed to being born in the outskirts of Philadelphia. I would love for Embiid to come back so I can just hold on to more hope that something might change or something be different. But he’ll probably end up getting, like, a freak virus that cripples him for the rest of the series.”

However, there are still some fans holding on to hope — including 13-year-old New Jersey native Christopher Sparany.

“It was back and forth, we were doing pretty good,” Sparany said. “I thought we had it at the end but Jayson Tatum hit that three and that put it away. Hopefully, we win the next [game]. Hopefully, we just blow them out and we move on.”

Before the game even started, fans let Boston know how they felt about them.

That energy continued throughout most of the night — whether fans were standing on their feet to chant “Boston sucks,” or cheering after a monster slam from VJ Edgecombe.

“I’ve never seen a crowd so pumped up and yelling so much about how bad the other team is,” said 57-year-old Matt Portella. “But it’s like a wave going around. It’s awesome. I love it.”

When asked what makes Philly fans hate Boston so much, 17-year-old Jayden Shee and Ziyon James put the blame on one person: Tatum.

“I feel like they’re always following Jayson Tatum,” James said. “He be overly carrying the ball and people are just overly gassing the Celtics. The Sixers are going to cook him.”

Shee added: “They kind of follow Jayson Tatum everywhere he goes. Because there’s a lot of Celtics fans here. But we hate the Celtics. We’re going to get them out of here.”

With less than a minute remaining in the second quarter, Sam Hauser hit a three to increase the Celtics’ lead. In response, fans in sections 122-124, the part of the arena speckled with the most green, stood on their feet to cheer on their team.

“You know, I’m seeing a lot of green,” said 20-year-old Boston native Michael Todd. “It makes me happy. Sixers fans are not loud enough, not enough energy. You go to a Bruins game, Celtics game and you see a lot more.”

But the Villanova student wasn’t alone. His girlfriend Gwen Bloesch, 21, was also in attendance — but instead of wearing Celtics gear, the New Jersey native was repping her Sixers fandom.

“He’s a fake fan,” Bloesch said. “He couldn’t name four [players] earlier. He had to look them up. … We have a bet going. Five dollars on the line.”

Looks like Todd just got an extra five dollars in his pocket — and the bragging rights that come with it.

Eagles first round draft pick Makai Lemon is already making himself at home. Just one day after getting drafted by the Birds, the University of Southern California wide receiver was at Game 3 watching playoff basketball alongside his new teammate DeVonta Smith.

Sporting a Maxey jersey, Lemon was welcomed with a warm embrace from the Philadelphia crowd as he rang the Sixers’ bell ahead of Game 3.