# 1965 NBA playoffs

The 1965 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1964–65 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Division champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Division champion Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals.
Boston won its seventh consecutive NBA title and eighth overall while handing the Lakers their fourth straight Finals loss in the process.
This was the first playoff appearance for the Baltimore Bullets, who had begun play in the 1961–62 season as the Chicago Packers.

## Bracket

| Division Semifinals | Division Semifinals | Division Semifinals | Division Finals | Division Finals | Division Finals | NBA Finals | NBA Finals | NBA Finals |
| | | | Eastern Division | Eastern Division | Eastern Division | | | |
| | | | E1 | Boston* | 4 | | | |
| E3 | Philadelphia | 3 | E3 | Philadelphia | 3 | | | |
| E2 | Cincinnati | 1 | | | | E1 | Boston* | 4 |
| | | | Western Division | Western Division | Western Division | W1 | Los Angeles* | 1 |
| | | | W1 | Los Angeles* | 4 | | | |
| W3 | Baltimore | 3 | W3 | Baltimore | 2 | | | |
| W2 | St. Louis | 1 | | | | | | |
* * Division winner
* Bold Series winner
* Italic Team with home-court advantage in NBA Finals

## Division Semifinals
### Eastern Division Semifinals
#### (2) Cincinnati Royals vs. (3) Philadelphia 76ers

* March 24
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 119, Cincinnati Royals 117 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–36, 27–28, 30–24, 24–20, Overtime: 11–9 |||
| Pts: Hal Greer 37 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 23 Asts: Greer, Kerr 6 each | Pts: Jack Twyman 25 Rebs: Jerry Lucas 27 Asts: Oscar Robertson 13 |
| Philadelphia leads series, 1–0 |||
* Cincinnati Gardens, Cincinnati, Ohio Attendance: 6,422
* March 26
* Boxscore
Cincinnati Royals 121, Philadelphia 76ers 120 :
| Scoring by quarter: 32–32, 28–33, 28–26, 33–29 |||
| Pts: Oscar Robertson 40 Rebs: Jerry Lucas 21 Asts: Oscar Robertson 13 | Pts: Wilt Chamberlain 30 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 15 Asts: Wilt Chamberlain 10 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Municipal Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Attendance: 5,801
* March 28
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 108, Cincinnati Royals 94 :
| Scoring by quarter: 35–28, 22–25, 22–21, 29–20 |||
| Pts: Hal Greer 30 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 15 Asts: Wilt Chamberlain 6 | Pts: Oscar Robertson 27 Rebs: Jerry Lucas 17 Asts: Oscar Robertson 12 |
| Philadelphia leads series, 2–1 |||
* Cincinnati Gardens, Cincinnati, Ohio Attendance: 6,289
* March 31
* Boxscore
Cincinnati Royals 112, Philadelphia 76ers 119 :
| Scoring by quarter: 18–28, 30–25, 24–36, 40–30 |||
| Pts: Jerry Lucas 35 Rebs: Jerry Lucas 19 Asts: Oscar Robertson 10 | Pts: Wilt Chamberlain 38 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 26 Asts: Hal Greer 7 |
| Philadelphia wins series, 3–1 |||
* Municipal Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Attendance: 7,451
This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Royals winning the first two meetings.
Cincinnati leads 2–0 in all-time playoff series :
1963
Syracuse Nationals 2, Cincinnati Royals 3
1963 Eastern Division Semifinals
1964
Philadelphia 76ers 2, Cincinnati Royals 3
1964 Eastern Division Semifinals :

### Western Division Semifinals
#### (2) St. Louis Hawks vs. (3) Baltimore Bullets

* March 24
* Boxscore
Baltimore Bullets 108, St. Louis Hawks 105 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–23, 24–22, 22–30, 36–30 |||
| Pts: Bailey Howell 25 Rebs: Walt Bellamy 20 Asts: three players 4 each | Pts: Lenny Wilkens 25 Rebs: Bill Bridges 23 Asts: Richie Guerin 6 |
| Baltimore leads series, 1–0 |||
* Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, Missouri Attendance: 5,320
* March 26
* Boxscore
Baltimore Bullets 105, St. Louis Hawks 129 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–37, 19–28, 32–18, 28–46 |||
| Pts: Don Ohl 23 Rebs: Walt Bellamy 12 Asts: Gus Johnson 7 | Pts: Richie Guerin 28 Rebs: Zelmo Beaty 12 Asts: Richie Guerin 10 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, Missouri Attendance: 7,628
* March 27
* Boxscore
St. Louis Hawks 99, Baltimore Bullets 131 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–26, 26–28, 24–36, 26–41 |||
| Pts: Zelmo Beaty 18 Rebs: Zelmo Beaty 17 Asts: four players 3 each | Pts: Bellamy, Ohl 23 each Rebs: Walt Bellamy 18 Asts: Johnson, Green 3 each |
| Baltimore leads series, 2–1 |||
* Baltimore Civic Center, Baltimore, Maryland Attendance: 6,358
* March 30
* Boxscore
St. Louis Hawks 103, Baltimore Bullets 109 :
| Scoring by quarter: 30–25, 24–26, 27–29, 22–29 |||
| Pts: Cliff Hagan 24 Rebs: Bill Bridges 20 Asts: Lenny Wilkens 4 | Pts: Kevin Loughery 31 Rebs: Walt Bellamy 10 Asts: Kevin Loughery 6 |
| Baltimore wins series, 3–1 |||
* Baltimore Civic Center, Baltimore, Maryland Attendance: 6,423
* Bob Pettit's last NBA game.
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

## Division Finals
### Eastern Division Finals
#### (1) Boston Celtics vs. (3) Philadelphia 76ers

* April 4
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 98, Boston Celtics 108 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–26, 20–27, 21–24, 34–31 |||
| Pts: Wilt Chamberlain 33 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 31 Asts: three players 3 each | Pts: Tom Heinsohn 23 Rebs: Bill Russell 32 Asts: Bill Russell 6 |
| Boston leads series, 1–0 |||
* Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts Attendance: 13,909
* April 6
* Boxscore
Boston Celtics 103, Philadelphia 76ers 109 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–28, 19–25, 25–31, 30–25 |||
| Pts: Sam Jones 40 Rebs: Bill Russell 16 Asts: Bill Russell 5 | Pts: Wilt Chamberlain 30 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 39 Asts: Wilt Chamberlain 8 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Municipal Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Attendance: 9,790
* April 8
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 94, Boston Celtics 112 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–34, 20–27, 18–17, 29–34 |||
| Pts: Wilt Chamberlain 24 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 37 Asts: Hal Greer 4 | Pts: S. Jones, Havlicek 24 each Rebs: Bill Russell 26 Asts: Bill Russell 8 |
| Boston leads series, 2–1 |||
* Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts Attendance: 13,909
* April 9
* Boxscore
Boston Celtics 131, Philadelphia 76ers 134 (OT) :
| Scoring by quarter: 21–32, 35–19, 29–40, 33–27, Overtime: 13–16 |||
| Pts: Sam Jones 36 Rebs: Bill Russell 25 Asts: K. C. Jones 10 | Pts: Wilt Chamberlain 34 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 34 Asts: Costello, Kerr 5 each |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* Municipal Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Attendance: 9,294
* April 11
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 108, Boston Celtics 114 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–34, 25–30, 22–26, 33–24 |||
| Pts: Wilt Chamberlain 30 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 21 Asts: Hal Greer 4 | Pts: Sam Jones 29 Rebs: Bill Russell 28 Asts: K. C. Jones 9 |
| Boston leads series, 3–2 |||
* Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts Attendance: 13,909
* April 13
* Boxscore
Boston Celtics 106, Philadelphia 76ers 112 :
| Scoring by quarter: 27–39, 23–26, 31–25, 25–22 |||
| Pts: Tom Sanders 25 Rebs: Bill Russell 21 Asts: Russell, K. C. Jones 5 each | Pts: Wilt Chamberlain 30 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 26 Asts: Larry Costello 6 |
| Series tied, 3–3 |||
* Municipal Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Attendance: 11,182
* April 15
* Boxscore
Philadelphia 76ers 109, Boston Celtics 110 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–35, 36–26, 20–29, 27–20 |||
| Pts: Wilt Chamberlain 30 Rebs: Wilt Chamberlain 32 Asts: Hal Greer 9 | Pts: Sam Jones 37 Rebs: Bill Russell 8 Asts: K. C. Jones 10 |
| Boston wins series, 4–3 |||
* Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts Attendance: 13,909
* John Havlicek steals the inbounds pass by Hal Greer.
This was the ninth playoff meeting between these two teams, with both teams splitting the first eight meetings when the 76ers were the Syracuse Nationals.
Tied 4–4 in all-time playoff series :
1953
Boston Celtics 2, Syracuse Nationals 0
1953 Eastern Division Semifinals
1954
Boston Celtics 0, Syracuse Nationals 2
1954 Eastern Division Round Robin Semifinals
1954
Boston Celtics 0, Syracuse Nationals 2
1954 Eastern Division Finals
1955
Boston Celtics 1, Syracuse Nationals 3
1955 Eastern Division Finals
1956
Boston Celtics 1, Syracuse Nationals 2
1956 Eastern Division Semifinals
1957
Boston Celtics 3, Syracuse Nationals 0
1957 Eastern Division Finals
1959
Boston Celtics 4, Syracuse Nationals 3
1959 Eastern Division Finals
1961
Boston Celtics 4, Syracuse Nationals 1
1961 Eastern Division Finals :

### Western Division Finals
#### (1) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (3) Baltimore Bullets

* April 3
* Boxscore
Baltimore Bullets 115, Los Angeles Lakers 121 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–29, 23–39, 26–24, 38–29 |||
| Pts: Don Ohl 29 Rebs: Bailey Howell 20 Asts: Walt Bellamy 5 | Pts: Jerry West 49 Rebs: LeRoy Ellis 15 Asts: Jerry West 8 |
| Los Angeles leads series, 1–0 |||
* Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California Attendance: 14,579
* April 5
* Boxscore
Baltimore Bullets 115, Los Angeles Lakers 118 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–36, 24–24, 30–30, 32–28 |||
| Pts: Don Ohl 30 Rebs: Walt Bellamy 20 Asts: Johnson, Bellamy 5 each | Pts: Jerry West 52 Rebs: Gene Wiley 12 Asts: Jerry West 9 |
| Los Angeles leads series, 2–0 |||
* Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California Attendance: 10,594
* April 7
* Boxscore
Los Angeles Lakers 115, Baltimore Bullets 122 :
| Scoring by quarter: 28–24, 28–39, 25–25, 34–34 |||
| Pts: Jerry West 44 Rebs: Gene Wiley 13 Asts: Jerry West 4 | Pts: Bailey Howell 29 Rebs: Bailey Howell 17 Asts: Johnson, Loughery 4 each |
| Los Angeles leads series, 2–1 |||
* Baltimore Civic Center, Baltimore, Maryland Attendance: 7,247
* April 9
* Boxscore
Los Angeles Lakers 112, Baltimore Bullets 114 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–24, 35–36, 25–22, 26–32 |||
| Pts: Jerry West 48 Rebs: Rudy LaRusso 14 Asts: Jerry West 5 | Pts: Don Ohl 28 Rebs: Walt Bellamy 16 Asts: four players 3 each |
| Series tied, 2–2 |||
* Baltimore Civic Center, Baltimore, Maryland Attendance: 10,642
* April 11
* Boxscore
Baltimore Bullets 112, Los Angeles Lakers 120 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–27, 23–26, 25–33, 35–34 |||
| Pts: Walt Bellamy 29 Rebs: Gus Johnson 16 Asts: Bellamy, Howell 5 each | Pts: Jerry West 43 Rebs: LeRoy Ellis 18 Asts: Jerry West 7 |
| Los Angeles leads series, 3–2 |||
* Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California Attendance: 15,013
* April 13
* Boxscore
Los Angeles Lakers 117, Baltimore Bullets 115 :
| Scoring by quarter: 20–30, 32–18, 35–33, 30–34 |||
| Pts: Jerry West 42 Rebs: LeRoy Ellis 10 Asts: Jerry West 8 | Pts: Don Ohl 34 Rebs: Walt Bellamy 15 Asts: Walt Bellamy 5 |
| Los Angeles wins series, 4–2 |||
* Baltimore Civic Center, Baltimore, Maryland Attendance: 8,590
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

## NBA Finals: (E1) Boston Celtics vs. (W1) Los Angeles Lakers

* April 18
* Boxscore
Los Angeles Lakers 110, Boston Celtics 142 :
| Scoring by quarter: 23–32, 26–32, 34–39, 27–39 |||
| Pts: Jerry West 26 Rebs: Gene Wiley 14 Asts: Walt Hazzard 5 | Pts: Sam Jones 25 Rebs: Bill Russell 28 Asts: K. C. Jones 8 |
| Boston leads series, 1–0 |||
* Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts Attendance: 10,180
* April 19
* Boxscore
Los Angeles Lakers 123, Boston Celtics 129 :
| Scoring by quarter: 29–35, 31–27, 29–39, 34–28 |||
| Pts: Jerry West 45 Rebs: Gene Wiley 15 Asts: Jerry West 5 | Pts: John Havlicek 24 Rebs: Bill Russell 25 Asts: Bill Russell 10 |
| Boston leads series, 2–0 |||
* Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts Attendance: 13,909
* April 21
* Boxscore
Boston Celtics 105, Los Angeles Lakers 126 :
| Scoring by quarter: 17–35, 31–33, 26–24, 31–34 |||
| Pts: Sam Jones 35 Rebs: Bill Russell 19 Asts: Larry Siegfried 5 | Pts: Jerry West 43 Rebs: Gene Wiley 28 Asts: Jerry West 7 |
| Boston leads series, 2–1 |||
* Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California Attendance: 14,243
* April 23
* Boxscore
Boston Celtics 112, Los Angeles Lakers 99 :
| Scoring by quarter: 32–24, 23–37, 33–21, 24–17 |||
| Pts: Sam Jones 37 Rebs: Bill Russell 23 Asts: Russell, K. C. Jones 5 each | Pts: LeRoy Ellis 24 Rebs: Gene Wiley 19 Asts: Wiley, Hazzard 5 each |
| Boston leads series, 3–1 |||
* Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California Attendance: 15,217
* April 25
* Boxscore
Los Angeles Lakers 96, Boston Celtics 129 :
| Scoring by quarter: 26–33, 22–24, 23–30, 25–42 |||
| Pts: Jerry West 33 Rebs: Gene Wiley 13 Asts: Walt Hazzard 10 | Pts: S. Jones, Russell 22 each Rebs: Bill Russell 30 Asts: K. C. Jones 9 |
| Boston wins series, 4–1 |||
* Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts Attendance: 13,909
* Tom Heinsohn's final NBA game.
This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning the first three meetings.
Boston leads 3–0 in all-time playoff series :
1959
Boston Celtics 4, Minneapolis Lakers 0
1959 NBA Finals
1962
Boston Celtics 4, Los Angeles Lakers 3
1962 NBA Finals
1963
Boston Celtics 4, Los Angeles Lakers 2
1963 NBA Finals :