A Thrilling Game Between the Sixers and Pacers

The Philadelphia 76ers managed to pull off a 113-104 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Monday night, despite playing with their food for most of the game. The final five minutes were crucial, as the team found its rhythm just in time to secure the win.

Tyrese Maxey, who had recently earned All-Star starter status, didn’t have the best performance throughout the majority of the game. However, he did manage to record a career-high eight steals and showed significant improvement in the fourth quarter. He finished with 29 points, shooting 12-of-24 from the floor.

Joel Embiid also had a mixed performance. After a scorching first quarter, he cooled off but found his form again in the fourth. He led all scorers with 30 points and nine rebounds, shooting 10-of-17 from the field.

VJ Edgecombe struggled in the first half, not making a single field goal. However, he managed to get his coveted poster dunk in the second half, scoring 11 points on 3-of-9 shooting from the floor.

Kelly Oubre Jr., who started in place of Paul George, had his best scoring output since returning from injury, tallying 18 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Meanwhile, Andrew Nembhard led the Pacers with 25 points.

On the front end of a back-to-back schedule, the Sixers were without PG due to a left knee injury, while the Pacers were without Bennedict Mathurin, Obi Toppin, and Tyrese Haliburton.

First Quarter: A Fast Start

Oubre kicked off the game with a strong offensive start, quickly getting to the basket after beating Johnny Furphy on his first two touches. Joel Embiid eased into the game, hitting midrange shots early. The Pacers started just as well, exploiting the Sixers’ overplaying of passes to create wide open baskets.

Embiid’s performance was particularly impressive, as he made his first five shots of the night. This pace was necessary given that Indiana started the game 8-of-12 from the field. The only resistance the Sixers offered came from Dominick Barlow, who grabbed a couple of steals and created layup opportunities from rebounds. Maxey took over from Barlow once the second unit entered, picking up three steals by cheating off a couple of times. The Sixers led by three after a high-scoring first quarter.

Second Quarter: Struggles and Turnovers

The second unit consisting of Adem Bona, Jabari Walker, and Trendon Watford faced a tough challenge offensively. This difficulty increased when Maxey subbed out for Edgecombe to start the second quarter. Even swapping out Barlow for Walker, this lineup could only score one basket in the half-court, which was a difficult layup by Quentin Grimes.

Despite the starters trickling back into the game, the Sixers struggled to score and stop the Pacers. Maxey missed his first two jumpers off the dribble and wasn’t looking to get to the basket outside of transition. Edgecombe, who was scoreless, wasn’t looking for his shot much either.

A three-pointer by Oubre could have settled things down, but the Pacers quickly got those three points back. Even if the Sixers tried to run everything through Embiid, it wouldn’t have worked as he shot 0-of-3 in the quarter. The only thing keeping the Sixers in the game was their ability to generate turnovers. The Pacers turned it over five times in the second quarter after giving it away six times in the first. A T.J. McConnell-esque backcourt steal from Maxey cut the Pacers’ lead to five, but they couldn’t get a good shot up on the last possession of the half to make it any closer.

Third Quarter: Improved Performance

The Sixers looked slightly better coming out of the break. Edgecombe attacked the basket more, getting fouled a couple of times, though he split both trips at the line. Maxey attacked the basket once, missed the layup, but it was putback by Barlow. They got some luck when Aaron Nesmith hit an open dunk, leading to an open Oubre three.

Edgecombe’s continued attack to the basket paid off — he finally got his first field goal of the night with a layup and putback his own missed floater a few moments later. Perhaps most importantly, he finally got that poster he’s been looking for all season, throwing it down over Sixers legend Tony Bradley.

It wasn’t a perfect defensive quarter by any means. Indiana’s guards were doing a lot of cooking off the dribble, and the two turnovers were the fewest the Sixers had generated in a quarter so far. On the Pacers’ final possession, they finally swarmed T.J. McConnell so he couldn’t get his 10-footer off, kicking out for a missed three that allowed the Sixers to hang on to a one-point lead.

Fourth Quarter: Securing the Win

Some up-and-down minutes to start the quarter from Maxey, who opened it with his fifth steal of the game and yet another fastbreak layup. He missed his next two shots, tough looks in the midrange, but got the rebound on the second and was able to put that back.

The second unit frontcourt of Walker and Bona gave the Sixers really strong minutes, helping them hold the Pacers scoreless for over two and a half minutes. Walker’s hustle doesn’t always show up in the box score, but it certainly did in this one with his three steals. The only bad thing was the Sixers’ half-court offense once again stalled out and they only extended their lead to six.

It took them way longer than anyone would have wanted, but the Sixers finally looked like a team that could put the lowly Pacers away in the final minutes of the game. Embiid knocked down a three upon returning and that seemed to relax everyone. Maxey continued his attack on the following possession, one more basket from Embiid followed and the Pacers were ready to call timeout to pack it in for the night.