PHILADELPHIA — It’s hard to call Friday night’s tilt against the Milwaukee Bucks a barometer game for the 76ers.
The Bucks came into the matchup a half-game behind the Boston Celtics atop the Eastern Conference standings. They also boast one of the league’s top-five players in Giannis Antetokounmpo.
But neither team was at full strength, and the Sixers lost Tyrese Maxey late in the second quarter to a left foot injury. So it’s hard to compare squads under those circumstances.
Yet, the Sixers can cherish posting a thrilling 110-102 victory at the Wells Fargo Center.
Joel Embiid finished with game highs of 32 points and eight assists to go with 11 rebounds and three blocks. He scored at least 32 points for the third consecutive game. He had a career-high 59 points on Sunday against the Utah Jazz one night after recording 42 against the Atlanta Hawks.
Maxey had 24 points, five assists, and four rebounds before suffering his injury late in the first half. X-rays were negative. The Sixers standout guard will have an MRI on Saturday. Georges Niang scored 17 points and made 4 of 8 3-pointers off the bench. Shake Milton added 15 points and six assists.
Antetokounmpo finished with 25 points and 14 rebounds. However, he made just 4 of 15 foul shots. Affter the game, the power forward stayed on the court to practice foul shooting.
Meanwhile, the Sixers (8-7) enjoyed their second three-game wining streak and have their first winning record of the season. They broke the game open with a 14-2 run to give them an 108-99 lead with 1 minute, 47 seconds remaining.
But the Sixers were a shell of the team with which they opened the season.
They were without starters James Harden and Tobias Harris because of injuries. Harden missed his sixth consecutive game with a right foot tendon strain. Harris was out with left hip soreness.
Furkan Korkmaz missed his second consecutive game with left knee swelling. Jaden Springer also was sidelined with a right quad strain. And Matisse Thybulle tried to gut it out on a sprained left ankle, playing two minutes in a reserve role. The shooting guard had started in the previous two games.
The Bucks were without Pat Connaughton (right calf strain), Joe Ingles (left knee ACL surgery), Wesley Matthews (right hamstring strain) and Khris Middleton (left wrist ligament surgery). Jrue Holiday (right ankle sprain) returned after missing the past four games, and Grayson Allen (right ankle sprain) was back after sitting out the last game.
Maxey’s injury
Maxey injured his left foot while driving to the basket and getting fouled with 1:36 before intermission. The third-year veteran went to the locker room after splitting a pair of foul shots and didn’t return.
Until that point, Maxey had accounted for 75.9% of the Sixers points in the second quarter. He had 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting to go with three assists. Eight points were created from his assists.
Up Next
The Sixers entertain the Minnesota Timberwolves at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. The Timberwolves are 7-8 and head into the matchup with a two-game winning streak.
