76ers Take Down Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks on Christmas Day

PHILADELPHIA, PA -- Christmas day in South Philly was nothing short of fantastic on Wednesday afternoon. For the first time in over 30 years, the NBA gifted the Philadelphia 76ers a home game on one of the most eventful dates in the entire league.

Now that the Sixers are in high demand, they are typically scheduled on Christmas day. However, having a home game was quite different in 2019. Considering the rareness of a Sixers' home game on Christmas day, Philly fans were not going to pass up the opportunity to show up and show out.

Coming into Philly on Wednesday were the top dogs of the Eastern Conference, the Milwaukee Bucks. With an extremely impressive record of 27-4, the Sixers knew they weren't getting an easy matchup on Christmas. Typically, the Sixers have given the Bucks some hard times over the last year, but in 2019 the slate was wiped clean.

With Giannis Antetokounmpo playing at an MVP level for the second-straight season, the Sixers knew they needed all of their top guns to be on their A-game. Specifically, they needed their superstar center Joel Embiid to play some of his best basketball.

To no surprise, Embiid came out and put on a show for a prime time broadcast. Though he wasn't a one-man band against Milwaukee, his game stood out the most, considering his primary opponent was the "Greek Freak."

Normally, Antetokounmpo is expected to put up nearly 30 points for the Bucks on a nightly basis. On Wednesday, however, Embiid gave the MVP favorite a fit. After knocking down only eight of his 27 attempted shots from the field, Antetokounmpo managed to only account for 18 points. It was clear that was his most frustrating performance of the year in front of a sold-out crowd on the road.

Embiid, on the other hand, dominated on the offensive side of the ball. Although he claims he wasn't on his best offensive game, Embiid still managed to pick up 31 points in 28 minutes on the court, leading the Sixers to victory.

Even though the Sixers are still a handful of games behind the Bucks in the standings, their win on Christmas day was nothing short of spectacular. Now, the Sixers have demanded even more respect from their peers as they picked up a statement win on their home court once again this season.