By: Kylan Watson

After beating the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night, the Philadelphia 76ers faced the New York Knicks for the second time this season, and thanks to a Tyrese Maxey (36 points) fourth quarter scoring explosion Philly beat New York 130-119 extending their winning streak to three games.

The Sixers started the game off a little slow but were able to find their rhythm late in the first quarter to take an early lead over the Knicks. VJ Edgecombe got the scoring going early in this game, he scored 18 of his 26 points in that period and made 4/9 three-pointers during this contest. Edgecombe has really hit his stride over the last few weeks and has grown into a consistent scorer and playmaker for Philly. He has become the fourth scoring option for the Sixers in his rookie year, and if he can continue to ascend as a three-pointer he will be up there with Maxey and Joel Embiid as a go to option for the franchise. Edgecombe continues to make his case to be a Rookie of The Year candidate this season and the top rookie in his class.

When the Knicks went on a run throughout this game the Sixers had an answer, once again Embiid (26 points, grabbed 10 rebounds in this game, and had 5 assists) put his stamp on the game as well and helped stabilize Philly’s offense in this contest. He has his bounce back and has rounded into form and if that continues the Sixers will be a problem in the wide-open Eastern Conference.

His playmaking continues to jump off the floor as well he found his teammates multiple times for wide open lay-ups and dunks which kept New York at bay and adds another dimension to Philly’s explosive offense.  Embiid rounding into form will also take the scoring load off Maxey and help keep him fresh, so he is not playing 40 plus minutes every game.

Despite playing last night, the Knicks continued to fight their way back in this game and made it difficult for Philly in the fourth quarter. Jalen Brunson (31 points), Karl Anthony-Towns (23 points), and OG Anunoby (19 points) combined for 74 of New York’s 119 points. The three of them did the best they could to keep the Knicks in this game, but the Sixers were able to limit their effectiveness and were able to stay ahead of the Knicks throughout this contest.

When the Sixers needed it most when Embiid was resting Maxey took this game over and hit multiple shots to close it out for them. His defensive prowess continues to show up throughout the season so far, he blew up multiple possessions for the Knicks by either jarring the ball loose or blocking the shot. Maxey, becoming a reliable defender alongside Edgecombe, makes them one of the best defensive backcourts in the league. Combine that with his scoring prowess and you have a guy who is one of the top MVP candidates in the league.

The Sixers will now prepare to face the Denver Nuggets who will not have Nikola Jokic available for this contest.  The Nuggets are missing multiple starters because of injuries but are still one of the most dangerous teams in the league. Philly will need to stay connected to their defensive assignments, limit their turnovers, and will need to continue to create and cash in on the high-percentage opportunities created from their ball movement. Implementing these things into their game plan for Monday night will put them in great shape to win their 20^th game of the season and extend their win streak to four games.