A stellar performance from Joel Embiid leads to a 112-105 home victory for the Sixers.
The Sixers hosted Chicago without all-star point guard Ben Simmons and sixth man Shake Milton, with Matisse Thybulle starting.
Philadelphia were off to a good start, going up 15-8 before the first timeout with Joel Embiid having his way with Wendell Carter Jr. on the offensive end, going 3-3 from the field and 2-2 from the line in the first four minutes. Matisse Thybulle was very disruptive with two blocks and a steal in the first eight minutes. The Sixers did well to stop Zach Lavine early on, limiting him to 1-5 from the field with a turnover to start the game. Multiple turnovers and poor offense from the bench players led to the Sixers only having a two-point advantage at the end of the quarter.
The second unit’s offense carried on struggling in the second quarter with Dwight Howard offensive rebounds seeming to be the only thing going right on that end. The return of the starters quickly undid the deficit though to get back in the lead. The hustle to crash the boards on the offensive end was commendable from the Sixers and the half ended with Philly up by five. Embiid led scoring, having put up 25 in the first half.
Turnovers kept the Bulls in the game as Philadelphia seemed incapable of holding onto the ball through a full possession. This remedied itself though as the Sixers played better in the late end of the quarter, extending the lead to 6 points going into the fourth.
With the second unit on the floor, the Bulls got back in the lead with 8:30 to go. Embiid then continued carrying the team alongside the rest of the starters to build a Sixers lead and extend it. The Sixers’ offense picked up as the game was approaching a close with Harris, Green and Curry also doing their part. The Sixers couldn’t contain Lavine late on as he kept Chicago in the game with his scoring but unfortunately for the Bulls, that wasn’t enough to overcome the spectacular performance that Embiid was putting up. The Sixers won 112-105.
The Sixers move on to play the Raptors away at 7PM ET on Sunday