By: Kylan Watson

After falling to the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night, the Philadelphia 76ers faced the Indiana Pacers after having most of the week off. Both teams traded blows in this contest but thanks to a vintage scoring performance by Joel Embiid, Philly beat Indiana 115-105 to win their 14^th game of the season.

For the first time this season the Sixers played a game without Tyrese Maxey who missed this game because of an illness he has been battling throughout the week. Philly did not miss a beat without him as Paul George (23 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, and had 5 assists in this contest) and VJ Edgecombe (22 points and had 5 assists in this game) carried the Sixers throughout the first quarter, they combined for 45 of Philly’s 115 points and Indiana had no answers for what they were doing in this game. George specifically has continued to look like his old self as he continues to work his way back from knee surgery. He scored whenever he wanted and was the primary ball handler for the Sixers. He was able to keep Philly’s high-powered offense on track throughout this contest and made timely passes to find his teammates for high-percentage scoring opportunities. His two-way and passing abilities are huge assets for them and make the Sixers one of the best two-way teams in the league.

Edgecombe had one of his best games of the season as well without Maxey on the floor someone had to be in the road runner position, and he was more than happy to be that guy in this game for the Sixers. His athleticism and length created multiple high-percentage opportunities for himself and his teammates. He continues to develop as a three-point shooter as well which is the weakest part of his game, but if he continues to make at least 40 percent or more of his three-pointers or more per game it will really benefit the Sixers offense and take the scoring load off Maxey, Embiid, and George. That will add another dimension to Philly’s explosive offense and improve their defensive scheme as well.

Despite the scoring explosion from George and Edgecombe, Indiana was able to storm back in this game thanks to Pascal Siakam (20 points) and Andrew Nembhard (18 points) who combined for 38 of the Pacers 105 points. Siakam finally found his offensive rhythm in the second half after being held in check in the first half. He was able to take full advantage of his length and rise above the smaller Sixers defenders and Philly had to put Joel Embiid on him to make things tougher on him. That made things difficult enough to shut down the Pacers offense late in the fourth quarter and propel the Sixers to victory in this game.

When the Sixers needed it the most Embiid took over this game as he scored 39 points in this contest. His highest scoring total since he scored 70 points against the San Antonio Spurs in 2024. Unlike Sunday’s game Embiid found his offensive rhythm and made 12/23 of his field goals and if he can continue to shoot like that he can get back to his all-world self. Which will be great for Philly and once again lessen the scoring load on Maxey who has played the most minutes in the league and could use some help from his teammates to lessen the load that he has had to take on this season.

Philly will now prepare to face the Atlanta Hawks for the second time this season and they will need to limit their turnovers and use their ball movement to create high-percentage scoring opportunities. Implementing these things into their game plan on Sunday night will put them in great position to win their 15^th game of the season on Sunday.