By: Kylan Watson
The Philadelphia 76ers were riding high as they faced the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers. In the third game of their six- game road trip. Philly used another hot shooting night from three to cook the Lakers 109-101. With the win Philly has picked up three wins with three more games to go on this road trip.
It looked good early on for Philly. They were able to create a lot of open opportunities on the perimeter for their shooters. Guard/forward Danny Green benefitted from the open opportunities as he scored 28-points and hit eight three-pointers for Philly. This was a revenge game for Green as he played his old team. He also got his ring tonight. So, he had a little extra motivation. He also has been on a little mini tear since the All-Star break. Green turning it on will be a bonus for Philly in the shooting department and will also create more space for the trio of Embiid, Simmons, and Harris.
On Green’s good night, “Danny Green is the most professional & consistent player in the NBA. Give us a chance to win every night & delivers in crunch time,” said Daryl Morey the 76ers President of Basketball Operations.
Despite Green’s scoring effort. The Lakers were able to use some strong perimeter defense and shooting to get back in the game and tie the game up at 58-58 by half-time. This run was powered by guard Dennis Schroder who scored 18-points. His ability to attack the paint and playmaking ability gave the Sixers trouble. However, they were eventually able to lock him down thanks to guard/forward Matisse Thybulle who put the clamps on him in the second half.
Despite Schroder being taken out of the game. The Lakers went on a 16-6 scoring run to cut the lead to five. Green hit a clutch three-pointer to put the LA to bed.
This was a great effort for the Sixers who were able to overcome an early game ejection from Dwight Howard. Without Howard Philly had no center. So, they had to play a little small ball. The fact that they were able to overcome that big loss along with not having Embiid. Says a lot about how far this team has come in such a short time.
Philly now heads to another prime-time match-up against the Los Angeles Clippers. They will need another strong night on the defensive side of the ball to shutdown the duo of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. They will also need to take advantage of their offensive opportunities if they want to get their fourth win on this road trip.
