By: Kylan Watson
The Philadelphia 76ers started group play for the debut of the 2023-24 In-Season Tournament against the Detroit Pistons. Early in the game Detroit used their speed and youth advantage to get out to a 16-point lead. The Sixers were able to slow them down in the second half defensively and used a third quarter explosion to beat them 114-106.
Philly started this game very slowly and they could not find the bottom of the net in the first two quarters. They shot 31.6% from the field by half-time the Pistons were swarming them and that forced a lot of turnovers. That allowed Detroit to get in the open court and get out to a 16-point lead. Detroit could not miss from the field, and it did not matter if the shot was wide-open or contested it was going in. The duo of Killian Hayes (23-points) and Cade Cunningham (21-points) led them they combined for 44 of Detroit’s 106-points and when the Sixers keyed in on one of them, they would find their teammates wide open for a high-percentage shot. They were threatening to end Philly’s hope of winning the In-Season Tournament Championship.
Despite the offensive explosion from the Pistons and having every reason to give up on this one. Philly continued to fight throughout this game. Nick Nurse made some big defensive adjustments to what the Pistons were doing. They shut down the paint and forced Detroit into difficult shots. They also did all they could to shut down Cunningham and Hayes and force another player to beat them. Their teammates could not answer the challenge and the Sixers scoring prowess finally woke up. They were led by the trio of Joel Embiid (33-points and grabbed 16-rebounds), Tyrese Maxey (29-points and had 10-assists) and Tobias Harris (24-points). The trio combined for 86 of Philly’s 114-points and they put the team on their backs. Each player hit some big shots during the third quarter comeback which helped Philly retake the lead and not look back in tonight’s contest. The continued scoring prowess of Tobias Harris has opened the floor up for Embiid and Maxey. An aggressive Harris is a great thing for the Sixers. Whatever Nick Nurse said during half-time clearly registered with the three of them as they helped erase a 16-point lead and snatch a victory from a game Detroit squad that wanted a victory.
The Sixers will now prepare for the Indiana Pacers on Sunday Night. They will need to stay attached to their man if they want to slow down the shooting of the Pacers backcourt duo of Tyrese Haliburton and Buddy Hield. Additionally, they will need to keep the ball moving and find the open man for high-percentage shots. If they can implement these things, they can get their eighth win of the season.
