Embiid fuels a late comeback for a satisfying Philadelphia 76ers win over the Toronto Raptors.
The Sixers came back home looking to recover after a brutal loss to the Cavaliers with a starting lineup of Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Danny Green, Tobias Harris and Joel Embiid. However, they were without bench player Furkan Korkmaz.
Toronto looked to win their first of the season with starters Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby, Pascal Siakam and Aron Baynes.
The game started well for the Sixers with the offense looking less scrappy. Tobias Harris was off to a good start putting up nine points in the first six minutes. A lack of communication or awareness on a few defensive possessions allowed the Raptors to be up 17-11 before Doc Rivers called a timeout with a little less than 5 minutes to go in the 1st.
Embiid was worryingly quiet before making a 3 late in the first quarter. The Sixers struggled to defend the 3 early on. The offense also seemed to deteriorate throughout the quarter, going 3-for-16 from the field after going 3-for-4 to start.
The quarter ended with the Raptors having outscored the Sixers 28-17
The second quarter didn’t seem to be much better early on with the Sixers trailing by 12 going into a timeout with 9:28 to go. Shake Milton was sent back to the bench early after poor minutes on the floor. The second unit didn’t make for good watching as they looked completely out of
With nothing going down for the Sixers, free throws were the only thing keeping them in the game. With Toronto in the penalty, Sixers managed to tie the game up with lots of free throws and a few looks at the rim while racking up defensive stops. This was undone in the last minute of the second quarter though, the half ending in a eight-point deficit for the Sixers.
Although inefficient, it should be noted that Simmons looked more aggressive with eight field goal attempts and six attempts at the charity stripe in the first half which is one free throw short of his total attempts in the entire Cleveland game.
The third quarter started with some good defensive possessions but the lead wasn’t cut down as they still didn’t seem to be able to find any success on the other end. As Curry seemed to be stepping up scoring or drawing a foul on three consecutive possessions, the Raptors countered by getting back in to the groove of things and making their shots.
Concerns rose as Embiid was very slow to get back up as he held his ankle after losing his footing while being double teamed in the post.
With Embiid going to the bench, the Sixers managed to make a few baskets but Toronto seemed to be getting open look after open look and they were making them. Embiid came back onto the court only a few minutes after heading to the locker room.
The Sixers then went on a 13-0 run to end the quarter with two made Milton free throws and the game tied up at 76-76. The third quarter comeback was fuelled primarily by Joel Embiid and Tobias Harris.
The Raptors were back in the lead again early in the fourth quarter but the Sixers were playing decent basketball. Milton did well to make his way to the rim, draw fouls and make good passes to apply some pressure on Toronto.
A Danny Green Green 3 and Tobias mid-range tied the game up with about five minutes to play which was followed by a timeout. A crucial overturning of an Aron Baynes 3 left the Sixers in the lead. They held on to this lead with great defense and composure on the offensive end to reap a favorable result of 100-93.
Credit goes to Embiid as the team outscored Toronto 35-17 after he returned to the court from his brief injury scare.
The Sixers face the Magic in Orlando on Thursday at 6:30 PM E.T.