By: Kylan Watson

Joel Embiid and Victor Wembanyama faced off for the first time in their careers tonight in Philadelphia. Both of them put on a show accepting the challenge of battling a peer in the talented big-man fraternity. Thanks to a 70-point performance from Embiid the Sixers were able to outlast the Spurs beating them 133-123 and pushing the win streak to six games.

Philly started this game off slowly early in this game, the shots were not falling, and the Spurs took full advantage. They made their first five three-point attempts and before the Sixers could even settle into the game, they were down by double digits with San Antonio threatening to blow them off their home-floor. However, the Sixers weathered the storm and were able to retake the lead later in the first quarter, thanks to Joel Embiid who once again had to remind another big man that he might be good, but he is not on his level. He scored 70-points (New career high and franchise record), grabbed 18-rebounds, and had five-assists  and there was nothing Wembamyama or his teammates could do to stop him. Embiid made his living from the mid-range in this contest, Wemby did a decent job of stopping him from attacking the paint, so he just rose up over him and found the bottom of the net. That was a recurring theme and nightmare for the Spurs defenders. They put Wemby on an island to guard Embiid and he barbecued him like ribs on a grill in the summertime. Sometimes as an NBA viewer and fan you just have to sit back and marvel at the greatness, we are all witnessing from Joel Embiid who is on the verge of winning his second-straight MVP and third-straight scoring title. When he plays like he did tonight the Sixers are the best team in the NBA and if he can combine that with his defensive dominance then a parade down Broad Street might be in the future for Philadelphia.

The Spurs to their credit continued to fight in this contest despite the scoring explosion from Embiid San Antonio still had a chance to steal this game. The duo of Wembanyama (33-points) and Devin Vassell (22-points) combined for 55 of the Spurs’ 123-points. Wembanyama used his scoring prowess to put the hurt on the Sixers as well. Early in the contest he hit back-to-back three-pointers to put his team ahead in the contest and he continued to find the bottom of the net throughout this contest. He has a long way to go but he gave Embiid a lot to think about in this game and if tonight was any indication this will be a rivalry that the NBA needs to make sure is always on prime-time television. The Sixers continued to use their unique blitz the opposing team’s best scorer strategy to get the ball out of his hands and force someone else to beat them. No one else in a Spurs uniform could make them pay for that strategy which has proven effective in the last few games. In the past few weeks, the Sixers have implemented more of Nick Nurse’s unique defensive looks, and it has worked on both Wembanyama and Nikola Jokic. That should worry their opponents because if the Sixers continue to do that, they will have one of the best defenses in the league.

The Sixers will now start a five-game road trip on Thursday Night in Indiana against the new-look Pacers. They will once again need to rely on their defensive prowess to slow down the new duo of Pascal Siakam and Tyrese Haliburton. Indiana usually gives the Sixers trouble but with Siakam now in the mix  they now have a player who can make a shot from the perimeter and the paint. They will need to force the Pacers shooters into difficult shots and hold them to one possession on the offensive side because if they get multiple opportunities to make a shot that will be trouble for Philly. Additionally, the Sixers will need to keep the ball moving against Indiana’s swarming and aggressive defensive scheme. To create high-percentage shot opportunities on the offensive side and make it difficult for opposing defenses to key in on Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey while also giving them the maximum amount of space to operate. If they can implement these things into their gameplan they can get their 30^th victory of the season and push their win streak to seven games.