By: Kylan Watson
After beating the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night, the Philadelphia 76ers faced the Miami Heat for the second time this season. Both teams traded blows in this game and when the Sixers needed it most Tyrese Maxey (28 points, had 11 assists, and made 5/12 three-pointers in this contest), Joel Embiid (26 point and grabbed 11 rebounds), and VJ Edgecombe (19 points) made multiple clutch buckets to help Philly beat Miami 124-117 to push their win streak to three games.
The Sixers once again found their offensive rhythm early in this game and were able to make their first few shot attempts of this game and gain confidence against a tough Miami squad. Tyrese Maxey scored 20 of his 28 points in the first quarter where he passed Allen Iverson as the franchise leader in three-pointers (886). Philly needed all the points they could get from him in this contest, but his biggest contribution in this game was the number of high-percentage scoring opportunities he created thanks to his gravity and playmaking abilities. He had 11 assists in this game, and all those assists were additional points that helped them pull away in this contest. Also, Maxey’s biggest assist of the night was finding Embiid on the left wing for the game clinching three-point basket. Maxey and Embiid need as much time on the floor together as possible because that two-man continues to add another dimension to Philly’s offense and Nick Nurse would be wise to develop different actions off the two-man game to create more scoring opportunities for their teammates. It has been a difference maker for the Sixers in most of the games they have played this season.
Despite the scoring explosion from Maxey the Heat did not give up in this game and were able to storm back late in third quarter. Bam Adebayo (29 points), Tyler Herro (25 points), and Andrew Wiggins (18 points) combined for 72 of the Heat’s 117 points and Philly did not have an answer for what they were doing throughout this game. In addition, late in the fourth quarter the Sixers turned up the defensive pressure on the Heat and that caused multiple turnovers that led to easy buckets for Philly which helped them win this game.
Maxey and Embiid will get much of the attention after this win, but it was Edgecombe who kept Philly in the game during the majority of the fourth quarter when Miami was making a late comeback attempt. His clutch shot making has continued to be a highlight of the 2025-26 NBA Regular Season for the Sixers it has saved them in multiple games and got them a win in tonight’s contest. Despite having two of the most dynamic scorers in the association as teammates, he still has enough confidence to find space on the floor where he is comfortable and put points on the board. Sixers really found a gem in last year’s draft, and it is up to Edgecombe to continue to develop his skillset and become the new superstar in Philadelphia.
The Sixers will now prepare for a Sunday night primetime matchup with the Boston Celtics on Sunday night and Jayson Tatum might return for that game. So, Philly will need to limit their turnovers, win, or keep the rebounding battle competitive, stay connected to their defensive matchup, and continue to cash in on the high-percentage scoring opportunities their ball movement creates. Implementing these things into their game plan on Sunday night will put them in great shape to win their 34th game of the season and extend their win streak to four games.
