Joel Embiid, 76ers Get Revenge on Pelicans With Monday Victory

Last Friday, the Philadelphia 76ers paid a visit to the New Orleans Pelicans. At full strength, with Tyrese Maxey returning to the bench, the Sixers looked forward to finally playing at full strength once again.

At first, all went well for the Sixers, who got off to a hot start in the first quarter of Friday’s game. Eventually, the hot start cooled off. Once the Pelicans turned the table on the Sixers, self-inflicted wounds gave the 76ers a tough time.

New Orleans took care of their lead on Friday and sent the Sixers to Oklahoma City with an 11-point loss. Since then, the Sixers scooped up a dominant victory on the road against the Thunder. Meanwhile, the Pelicans cooled off as they took on a loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Three nights after their initial meeting in New Orleans, the Sixers and the Pelicans battled it out once more in South Philly on Friday night.

Quarter Breakdown

1st Quarter

After being listed as questionable due to back soreness on Monday morning, Joel Embiid went through his pregame warmup and was cleared for action. As expected, Embiid got the nod to start. To no surprise, the big man was quite productive on the offensive end of the floor to start out the game.

Similar to last Friday’s game, the Sixers got off to a hot start, which featured a 10-4 run that forced the Pelicans into a timeout after a timely three from De’Anthony Melton. Once the Pelicans came out of the timeout, though, the game started to shift as the Pelicans gained a lead with a little over six minutes left in the quarter.

The Sixers got a nice moral boost after their third-year guard Tyrese Maxey checked in at the Wells Fargo Center for the first time since November 18, which led to a loud standing ovation from the crowd.

Shortly after Maxey checked in, Philly’s bench gave the Sixers a solid boost, as a couple of Georges Niang threes, along with a Maxey and-one, allowed the Sixers to gain a 33-25 lead at the end of the first quarter.

2nd Quarter

Georges Niang’s hot streak to close out the first quarter continued at the start of the second quarter as the veteran forward successfully knocked down two threes within the first few minutes of the quarter.

Sixers guard James Harden followed suit by bringing the offensive intensity, attacking the basket, and drawing fouls in the paint. The All-Star clocked in for eight minutes, draining three of his seven shots and going 3-3 from the charity stripe. Harden produced ten of the Sixers’ 24 second-quarter points.

Outside of Harden and Niang, the Sixers didn’t get much on the offensive end of the floor as they struggled, shooting 33 percent overall. Meanwhile, on the defensive end, the Sixers struggled to find an answer for Zion Williamson and his attack in the paint.

The young star accounted for 12 points, making all but two of his shots and going 4-6 from the free throw line. After a frustrating quarter for the Sixers, which contained nine fouls from the home team, New Orleans outscored Philadelphia 27-24, cutting the lead down to just five points before the half.

3rd Quarter

Coming out of the half, both teams engaged in a battle of the stars. The Pelicans hit first as Zion Williamson’s continued dominance attacking the basket turned a Sixers lead into the Pelicans getting out in front, although the Sixers once led by as many as ten points in the third quarter.

Joel Embiid’s work on the offensive end kept the Sixers extremely competitive, though. The Sixers’ big man checked in for nearly the entire third quarter. He took 13 of the Sixers’ 21 attempted shots. The big man put up 15 of the Sixers’ 27 points.

Meanwhile, Williamson was a perfect 5-5 from the field, accounting for ten of the Pelicans’ third-quarter points. New Orleans outscored the Sixers 29-27, which got the Pelicans within three points before the fourth quarter.

4th Quarter

After showing signs of being in pain late in the third quarter, Zion Williamson walked off the court and went back to the Pelicans’ locker room. According to the Pelicans, the veteran star suffered a hamstring strain and would not return to the court.

He left the game with 26 points, making all but two of his 12 shots from the field in 28 minutes

Considering Williamson was dominant all game long, his absence caused the Pelicans to take a clear offensive hit in the fourth quarter. While the Pelicans didn’t roll over and concede the matchup with their superstar out, the offensive void Williamson’s injury left helped the Sixers gain a significant advantage in crunch time.

The Pelicans put up a good fight throughout the final quarter, but they didn’t have enough to stop Embiid and the Sixers, who collected the 120-111 win over New Orleans.

Player of the Game

Joel Embiid

Once again, the Sixers’ big man had himself a dominant showing. Despite dealing with back soreness from Saturday’s game in Oklahoma City, Embiid looked unbothered as he continued to dominate on the offensive end with efficient shooting from the field. The All-Star would lead the Sixers, scoring a game-high of 42 points on 63 percent shooting from the field.