By: Kylan Watson
The Philadelphia 76ers returned to South Philadelphia to face off with the Atlanta Hawks and it is always an interesting game when these two teams get together. The contest did not disappoint as both teams traded blows and it took a 15-to-nothing scoring run to clip the surging Hawks 125-114.
Philly jumped on Atlanta from the opening tip-off they were able to hit their shots early on and keep the ball moving to maximize their offensive opportunities. Before the Hawks could even settle into this game, they were down by 12-points and the Sixers were threatening to run away with the contest. Then the Hawks scored 45-points in the second quarter to retake the lead and put the Sixers on their heels. During this run the Hawks took advantage of their speed advantage and attacked the basket which put the Sixers defenders in foul trouble and that inside attack opened up the three-point line for Atlanta. The trio of De’Andre Hunter (24-points), Dejounte Murray (20-points), and Bogdan Bogdanovic (20-points) combined for 64 of Atlanta’s 114-points and gave Philly fits on the perimeter. The three of them would hit shots and it did not matter if hands were in their faces or the shots were wide open, they found the bottom of the net. The trio continued to fight throughout this game and if it were not for the Sixers finally turning the heat up on defense and forcing them to take contested shots Atlanta would have won this game. However, it was not to be tonight as in the fourth quarter Atlanta experienced a five-minute power outage during a pivotal stretch in this game which gave Philly just enough time to pull this out.
When Philly needed it the most Joel Embiid once again put the team on his back, he scored 38-points, grabbed 14-rebounds, and had four-blocks. His two-way ability once again saved the Sixers from their inability to put this game away. He had some pivotal blocks to keep Philly ahead in this contest. His presence forced Atlanta to change their plans of attacking the paint and forced them into well contested shots and turnovers that led to easy buckets for Philly. In one sequence during this game an Atlanta player was attacking the paint and De’Anthony Melton stole the ball which found its way to Nicolas Batum. Who fired an outlet pass straight to Melton who finished the play and put the Sixers back ahead in this contest. Embiid being on the floor allows his teammates to be more aggressive on the defensive end which leads to plays like this which help the Sixers win games.
The Sixers will now prepare for a Monday night matchup with the Washington Wizards, and they will need to improve their perimeter defense if they want to keep Jordan Poole and Kyle Kuzma in check. It will be important to hold the Wizards to one possession and not give them easy perimeter shots. Additionally, Philly will need to continue moving the ball to maximize their offensive possessions and find high percentage shot opportunities. This offensive scheme unlocks their three-point shooting which is one of the best in the league and keeps the paint wide open for Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey to attack it. If they can implement these things, they should be able to get their 15th win of the season on Monday.
