By: Kylan Watson
After falling to the New York Knicks on Tuesday Night, the Philadelphia 76ers faced off with the Milwaukee Bucks for the final time in the 2023-24 NBA regular season. Both teams traded blows throughout this game, and Philly looked like the more physically imposing team throughout the contest. However, once the Bucks turned it on and they got some pivotal blocks that got them easy buckets on the fast break. That helped them overcome Philly 114-105 extending the Sixers losing streak to two games.
The Sixers finally got their offensive rhythm back as they finally started cashing in on the high-percentage shot opportunities created off their ball movement. That put Milwaukee on their heels early in this game and before the Bucks could even settle into this game they were down by double-digits by half-time. The duo of Tyrese Maxey (30 points) and Tobias Harris (15 points) combined for 45 of the Sixers 105 points. This was the best offensive performance Philly has had in awhile but that absence of a third scorer showed up again. They did not have enough players step up in this game to take it away from a relatively healthy Bucks squad. More players have to step-up if the Sixers expect to get to the sixth seed and avoid the Play-In Tournament. It cannot all fall on Maxey and Harris (went down with an ankle injury, but stayed in the game) someone else has to step up and take the scoring load off of Maxey and Harris. Once that happens the Sixers can start stringing some wins together and get some positive momentum heading into the post season.
Despite the offensive explosion from Maxey and Harris, Milwaukee weathered the storm and finally made their move in the fourth quarter. Their shots started falling and they turned up the defensive heat. The duo of Giannis Antetokounmpo (32 points) and Brook Lopez (19 points, made five/10 three-pointers in the contest) combined for 51 of the Bucks’ 114 points. Lopez in particular was a defensive menace he had seven blocks in this game and Milwaukee was able to turn most of those blocks into points on the other end. His defense on top of hitting a late three-pointer was the difference in this game. The Sixers just could not overcome his presence and size on both ends of the court. He took full advantage of Philly having no one available that could deal with him in this contest.
The Sixers will now travel back to Philly to prepare for a Saturday night showdown with the Charlotte Hornets. Philly will need to cash in on the high-percentage shots that are created from their ball movement, like they did in this contest tonight. The Sixers are a different team when their shots are falling and play way more aggressively when that is the case. Additionally, the Sixers will have to play better perimeter defense than they did tonight to discourage the shooters of the Hornets. If they can implement these things into their gameplan for Saturday they can get their 37th victory of the season.
