By: Kylan Watson

After beating the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night. The Philadelphia 76ers faced the Miami Heat tonight with playoff seeding on the line. Both of these teams went back and forth. When it mattered the most Tyrese Maxey closed the Heat out of this game with some big buckets to keep Philly ahead in this game. That helped the Sixers get their biggest win of the season 109-105 and pushing their win streak to three games.

The Sixers once again found their offensive rhythm early again they dominated the Heat in this game. They cashed in on their high percentage shooting opportunities off their ball movement. Before the Heat could even settle into the game, they were down by 16 points with the Sixers threatening to blow them off the floor. For the first time since late January both Tyrese Maxey (37 points, had 11 assists, and grabbed nine rebounds) and Joel Embiid (29 points) were on the floor at the same time. The reuniting of the highest scoring duo in the league made the Heat pay for every mistake. They combined for 66 of Philly’s 109 points and Maxey was the closer tonight in his first game back from a sore hip injury. He played like he did not miss the last few games, and when it mattered the most his improved confidence came through. As he attacked the paint and made the big buckets for the Sixers. In one sequence he dribbled through traffic, shook his man out of his shoes and rose up to score the pivotal bucket that helped Philly retake the lead in this contest. If the Tyrese Maxey who played tonight shows up in the playoffs, then the Sixers will make a deep playoff run in the postseason.

To their credit Miami weathered the Maxey and Embiid storm and were able to take full advantage of Philly’s mistakes. Miami capitalized on those turnovers the Sixers had in this contest. In one instance a turnover from Philly led to an easy three-point opportunity by Miami to help them retake the lead. Miami really let the Sixers have it in the fourth quarter and were threatening to run away with the game. When Philly needed it, most Kelly Oubre Jr. made the plays that allowed them to get back in the game. He stole the ball from the Heat and scored on a lay-up to push the Sixers lead to five points. That allowed for Maxey to hit two pivotal free throws to ice this game for Philly. Additionally, the Sixers defense finally looks dominant now that Joel Embiid is back, and they immediately put Kyle Lowry on Jimmy Butler and he made it difficult enough on him. That allowed the Sixers to force someone else to beat them and no one else could answer the challenge tonight.

Philly will now prepare for a Saturday night showdown with the Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies are a team that is struggling right now, but Philly cannot take them lightly. They will need to continue to cash in on the high-percentage shots created off their ball movement, like they did tonight. Additionally, if the Sixers can play defense like they did tonight they should be able to make things difficult for Desmond Bane, Jaren Jackson Jr., and the rest of Memphis’ shooters. The Sixers will also need to limit them to one possession on the offensive side. If they give them multiple opportunities to make a shot that could be a long night for the Sixers. They should be able to implement these things into their gameplan for Saturday night, and if that happens, they can get their 43^rd victory of the season.