76ers vs. Spurs: Live Updates From Sixers' Second Seeding Game
On Monday night, the Philadelphia 76ers are set to continue their regular season with a matchup against the San Antonio Spurs. This past Saturday, the Sixers got off to a quick start against an undersized and undermanned Indiana Pacers squad.
But it didn't take long before the Pacers bounced back to put the Sixers in their place. A sloppy game from Philly resulted in a significant loss. Now, the 76ers will look to bounce back against a Western Conference team that needs a win much more than they do.
With the Spurs just a couple of games out from the Western Conference's eighth seed, snagging victories in the next seven games are crucial. Meanwhile, the Sixers already have a spot clinched in the East -- and failed to take over the fifth seed after losing to Indiana on Saturday.
Regardless of who needs Monday's game more, the Sixers are out to prove they aren't going to continue making the same mistakes during the remainder of the season. Knowing the Spurs are the inferior opponent, the Sixers need to come out and boost their spirits by picking up a notable win on Monday night.
Here, we'll offer live updates before and during the game, beginning with notes from Brett Brown's pregame press conference.
Game Details
Philadelphia 76ers vs. San Antonio Spurs
Time: 8:00 PM EST.
Location: Orlando, Florida
Odds: Sixers -6.5, O/U 228.5
Broadcast: NBC Sports Philadelphia
*Odds Provided by The Action Network
Pregame Reading
Sixers Injury Report
Kyle O'Quinn (Failed to test): Out
Glenn Robinson III (Hip Pointer): Out
Mike Scott (Knee soreness): Out
Spurs Injury Report
Marco Bellinelli (Foot): Out
Bryn Forbes (Hip pointer): Out
Trey Lyles (Appendectomy): Out
Brett Brown's Pregame Notes
- Brett Brown believes the Sixers scored "more than enough points" during the Pacers matchup. In his eyes, the fourth-quarter defense is what lost them the game. Against the Spurs, the Sixers will lock into the Spurs' key scorers in the fourth quarter -- Brown mentioned DeMar DeRozan specifically.
- After re-watching the Pacers game, Brown saw only one moment when Ben Simmons should've stepped out of his comfort zone and took a jump shot (I'm assuming it's the one that pretty much everybody saw as it was obvious). "It's not on my mind like it is on everybody else's," Brown said. Once again, the Sixers coach makes it clear that Simmons' jump shot isn't a primary issue.
- With the Spurs coming into a back to back matchup with the Sixers, Brown believes it won't make much of a difference. Typically, a back to back involves some light travel for an NBA team, but being that everybody is in the same bubble, back to backs are hardly something teams will worry about. Besides, Brown made it clear he believes back to backs are an "overrated" topic anyway outside of the bubble.
- Is Kyle O'Quinn's failure to test for COVID-19 on Sunday a learning experience? "I think, without beating it up -- the bottom line is that it is a learning experience." And that's all Brown had to say on that topic.
Sixers' Starting Lineup
PG: Shake Milton
SG: Josh Richardson
SF: Tobias Harris
PF: Ben Simmons
C: Joel Embiid
Good to see the Sixers Keeping up With Tradition...
Tonight, the Sixers are considered to be "hosting" the San Antonio Spurs as if it were a home game. Therefore, Ron Brooks, "the world’s first double amputee to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout," was singing the National Anthem, which all members of the 76ers kneeled for.
Also, the introductions were the same as if the Sixers were at the Wells Fargo Center. As expected, it felt weird and the team didn't seem to get too hyped during the introductions. Hopefully, the energy changes by tip-off.
Shake's on the Board
On Saturday night, Sixers' starting point guard Shake Milton struggled to pick up a point after taking just one shot. Tonight, he's on the board early with the team's eighth point. It was a nice putback by the second-year guard.
Having Flashbacks Yet?
On Saturday night, the 76ers allowed T.J. Warren to go off for over 50 points. He started his night with 19 points in the first quarter. Spurs star DeMar DeRozan is four for six from the field with nine points in five minutes so far. The Sixers are really going to need Ben Simmons to step it up to avoid another performance close to Warren's.
Brett Brown's Still Confident in Furkan Korkmaz
Sixers' reserve guard Furkan Korkmaz might've had one of the most disappointing stretches so far for the Sixers down in Orlando. After failing to make any sort of impact during the team's three scrimmages, Korkmaz also struggled against the Pacers as he went 0-4 from the field, totaling for three points from the foul line. At this point, Brown still uses Korkmaz as one of the first subs to come in, though, showing he still has faith in the third-year shooter.
Josh Richardson Accepts Brett Brown's Challenge
On Sunday, Brett Brown talked about how he would like Josh Richardson to start organically finding his own shot on the offense. Although he shares the floor with guys like Embiid, Simmons, and Harris, Brown still wants Richardson to make an impact as well. In the first quarter tonight, he already hit two threes and has nine points.
END OF FIRST QUARTER. SIXERS LEAD SPURS 35-32.
Spurs Applying the Pressure on Embiid
After dropping over 40 points the other night, Joel Embiid is drawing a lot of attention from the Spurs as expected. Every time Embiid gets the ball he's drawing double teams from the defense.
Josh Richardson's Cooling Down a Bit
As we mentioned earlier, Richardson is stepping up and taking on Brown's challenge of getting more shots off to create an early impact. He's got ten points in the first half but has struggled since the first quarter. With a little over five minutes left to go in the half, Richardson is 2-7 from the field in 12 minutes.
The Sixth Man is in the Building... Kind of
Sixers fans need no introduction for this guy...
END OF SECOND QUARTER. SIXERS LEAD SPURS 64-62
Ben Simmons Seeing Some Foul Trouble
We're back for the second half and Ben Simmons gets into some foul trouble right off the bat in the third quarter. It hasn't even been a minute yet and Simmons had to be replaced by Al Horford as he picked up his fourth foul of the game.
Shake Milton is Looking Confident
Everybody has a bad game. Unfortunately, Milton's bad game happened to be the first game of the Sixers' restart. After failing to put up a single point on Saturday, though, Milton looks a lot better on Monday night. He's got nine points, shooting 4-5 from the field right now.
Tobias Harris is Having Another Solid Night
Not only is Harris having another solid night on the offensive side of the ball, but he's making an impact on defense as well. He's surely been one of the Sixers' best players down in Orlando this summer.
Ben is Back
Simmons managed to play less than a minute at the start of the third quarter because he picked up his fourth foul of the game. With just under four minutes left, Simmons checks back in for the first time since leaving as Tobias Harris had to come off after picking up a fourth foul.
More Foul Trouble for Simmons
The Sixers are in a really tough spot now as some of their key players are getting into foul trouble. Simmons, who missed a good chunk of the third quarter with four fouls just picked up another before the fourth quarter even started. Meanwhile, Tobias Harris is currently on the bench with four fouls of his own. Not an ideal situation for Philly.
END OF THIRD QUARTER. SIXERS LEAD SPURS 99-87.
A Solid Bounce Back for Milton and Korkmaz
Guys like Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris, and Josh Richardson will probably get a lot of credit in tonight's game, but that shouldn't take credit away from Furkan Korkmaz and Shake Milton. Both guards struggled in the first seeding game but are bouncing back tonight. Heading into the fourth quarter, Milton is shooting 5-7 for 13 points. Korkmaz is 3-6 from deep with 10 points off the bench.
Joel Embiid is Simply Dominant
It's not another 40-plus point night for Embiid, but he's leading the Sixers in scoring once again with 21 points in 26 minutes. He's also one rebound away from another double-double. At the moment, Brett Brown has Embiid out of the game as he trusts his bench to keep the team in the lead before he comes back in to close this one out.
This is Getting too Close for Comfort
When Embiid came out of the game the Sixers had a double-digit lead. Now, it's just a one-possession game as a Joel Embiid-less lineup allowed the Spurs to crawl back and make it a two-point game. Sixers just called a timeout. Going to have to assume Brown is ready to get Embiid back out there to try and close this one out with a win.
Shake Milton is Down
Sixers starting point guard collided with a member of the Spurs going for a rebound. It looks like he busted his lip and trainers are taking care of him as he's still down. He will likely be OK, but he remains down as referees are reviewing the play.
*Quick Update: Shake is good and remains in the game after getting cleaned up.
Simmons Fouls Out
It seemed like it was coming sooner than later. With five fouls late in the fourth quarter, Simmons accidentally tripped up DeMar DeRozan and collected his sixth foul. Now, Simmons' night is finished. He ends the night with just eight points, five assists, a steal and a block in 25 minutes.
Another Late Collapse Coming?
Against the Pacers on Saturday, the Sixers allowed Indiana to climb back into the lead and put up 46 points in the final quarter. The Spurs are having a similar comeback as they put up 40 here in the fourth quarter and took their first lead since the second quarter.
END OF GAME. SIXERS DEFEAT SPURS 132-130.
