Tyrese Maxey, 76ers Fall Short vs. Phoenix Suns on Saturday

Coming off of a tough shorthanded loss on the road against the Golden State Warriors on Friday night, the Philadelphia 76ers were back on the floor Saturday night to face the Phoenix Suns.

For the second time this season, the Sixers faced the Suns without their ten-time All-Star guard James Harden. On the other side, the Suns missed two starters of their own, as Kevin Durant and DeAndre Ayton weren’t cleared for action.

While the Sixers were fortunate to have Joel Embiid on the floor after he was questionable with calf tightness going into the matchup, the big man’s presence didn’t have the same impact compared to his MVP-caliber performance in Golden State.

Instead, Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey stood out for Philly on Saturday. Getting off to a quick start, the young guard knocked down three of his four shots from the field for eight points. While Embiid led the way for the Sixers with nine points in the first ten minutes, Maxey had a phenomenal second-quarter performance to keep the game close.

Spending the entire 12 minutes on the floor before the half, Maxey made all but one of his six shots. He drilled several threes, wrapping up the first half with a total of five makes from beyond the arc. Maxey had 21 of Philadelphia’s 53 points.

Trailing by five points at halftime, the Sixers had the game within reach going into the third quarter. As Maxey kept his foot on the gas, he helped the Sixers shoot 56 percent from the field and was responsible for two of the five threes the Sixers knocked down in the third quarter.

While they shot more efficiently than Phoenix in the third quarter, the Sixers still trailed 89-83 going into the fourth quarter of action. With Maxey still on a hot streak from the field, the young guard needed a little assistance to help the Sixers gain some steam in the fourth quarter to battle for a comeback victory.

Unfortunately, it simply wasn’t the Sixers’ night. Maxey and Embiid attempted to keep the Sixers alive in the fourth quarter, but they didn’t have an answer to Phoenix’s offensive attack. With a 12-point quarter by Cameron Payne, along with TJ Warren and Terrence Ross combining for 14 points in the final 12 minutes, the Sixers lost control and were outscored 36-22 in the fourth quarter.

The game concluded with a lopsided 125-105 victory in favor of Phoenix. The Sixers got an impressive 37-point effort from Maxey, but the lopsided bench battle, which featured the Suns’ reserves outscoring the Sixers’ 53-13, didn’t offer the Sixers any help.

With that loss, the Sixers collect their second in a row, dropping them to 49-25 on the year. They’ll get Sunday off before they pay a visit to the Denver Nuggets on Monday.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.