76ers survive third-quarter collapse, beat short-handed Pacers 114-109 behind Maxey
Tyrese Maxey scored 27, including two late threes, as the 76ers came back from 13 down after three quarters to beat the Pacers 114-109 and move to 4-1.
The Philadelphia 76ers gave away a double-digit lead to an Indiana team missing two starters, then took it back in the fourth quarter. Tyrese Maxey scored 27 points, 15 of them in the fourth, and hit two three-pointers in the final two minutes to close out a 114-109 win at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Wednesday night. Philadelphia moves to 4-1 and bounces back right away from Monday's home loss to Detroit.
The win came against a thin Pacers roster. Indiana played without Tyrese Haliburton, out with a mild hamstring strain, and center Ivica Zubac, who has a sprained ankle, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. SB Nation reported that T.J. McConnell was also out. Philadelphia was missing Jabari Walker (knee soreness), Dominick Barlow and Tacko Fall.
The Sixers led 62-52 at halftime after VJ Edgecombe made a pull-up from half court at the buzzer. Then the third quarter went badly. Indiana scored the first 17 points of the half and won the period 36-13, so Philadelphia went into the fourth trailing 88-75. SB Nation described a run of stalled isolation possessions and live-ball mistakes that gave the Pacers chances to run, which is how they like to play. Jaylen Brown also took a hit to the head while drawing a foul late in the quarter.
Philadelphia won the fourth 39-21, with a 24-6 run in the middle of it. Joel Embiid's two-man game with Maxey got things going. Maxey's drive tied the game at 94, and an and-one by Edgecombe helped put the Sixers ahead to stay. Embiid made a fadeaway from the nail after Andrew Nembhard cut the margin to one. Maxey then hit a stepback three and another open three when the Pacers loaded up on LeBron James.
Four Sixers reached 20 points, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia. Embiid had 21 points and 11 rebounds. Brown scored 20 on 7-of-13 shooting and grabbed 10 rebounds. Anfernee Simons came off the bench with 20 and made four threes in the first half. James shot 5-of-12 and finished with 13 points and 10 assists. For Indiana, Pascal Siakam had 26 points and 11 rebounds, and Nembhard added 18 points and 14 assists.
The offense is still a concern. SB Nation called the first quarter "another lackluster offensive quarter" for Philadelphia. The Sixers have now held 25-25 ties or worse against weakened teams and needed a big final quarter to get through.
What it means for Friday against the Knicks
The 76ers come home Friday to host New York on Prime Video. It is their first NBA Cup group-stage game, and it gives a regular-season result extra weight. The teams met in the season opener, when Philadelphia won 106-100 at Madison Square Garden.
The Sixers' four wins have come by 6, 8, 11 and 5 points. The Detroit loss, when they scored 93, is the one game where the offense never got going. Against a full-strength Knicks team, they probably can't afford another quarter like Wednesday's third. Maxey and Embiid's late two-man game, along with Simons' shooting off the bench, are what they took from this win. The concerns are how often they settle for contested midrange shots and the turnovers on inbounds plays. Brown's head knock and James bumping knees with Jalen Slawson are worth watching, but neither outlet reported an injury after the game.
