Sixers Waste Great Games By Their Star Players In Game 2 Loss
It would be hard to find a worse way for a game 2 to end than that. The Sixers had a 4 game lead. The refs missed a timeout, and a foul on Maxey, leading to a Knicks steal, and a go-ahead 3. The Sixers lost 104-101, falling to 0-2 in the series.
You would think if they lost their first two games, it must mean the Sixers star players are struggling, right? Not so much.
At 35 and 34, Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid were the two highest scorers in the game. You can’t even say they came up small at the end of the game. Maxey scored 15 points in the final quarter, and Embiid kept them afloat in the 3rd. Those two did everything they could to win this game. The problem was the rest of the team.
Another Bad Night for The Sixers Role Players
The rest of the Sixers team scored 32 total points. Embiid and Maxey each outscored the rest of the team on their own. Tobias Harris struggled on the offensive side, but he at least gave you 9 rebounds and some decent defense. Kyle Lowry was not as hot from 3 as he was in game 1, but he gave you tough minutes. There is not much good to say about the rest of the role players.
Kelly Oubre now has just 14 points in 2 games. The bench as a unit has only 17 points in 108 combined minutes. Buddy Hield has 2 points.
I don’t care how good your stars are. You can’t win games like that. This was supposed to be their best group in the Joel Embiid era, so far Kyle Lowry has been the only consistent role player.
Refs Were Terrible, But Not Why The Sixers Lost
Sadly, anytime you talk about bad refs, you have to preface it with the obvious statement that it is not why the team lost. That should be a given, but if you leave it out, you get attacked by people acting like you are just making excuses. The Sixers’ poor bench play, and rebounding, cost them the game. But the refs were still terrible.
Too often there was a disparity in how the game was called. They would mug Tyrese Maxey on one end, then give the Knicks the call on minimal contact on the other end.
The end-game sequence was the worst part. Nick Nurse clearly called a timeout. Tyrese Maxey was clearly fouled. The refs ignored both, and it let the Knicks take the lead.
That sequence is not the only reason why they lost. If the bench is just mediocre, the Sixers win by a lot. But the refs were still terrible and deserve to be called out.
Rebounding Falls Apart At The Worst Time
For 3 quarters the Sixers did a good job of rebounding. Then they forgot how to rebound. The issues with the end-game sequence aside, if the Sixers just rebound it doesn’t happen.
The Knicks controlled the boards late in the game. Embiid doesn’t have the legs to be the dominant rebounder he usually is. Maybe one of those role players could at least contribute on the boards if they arent going to score. But apparently not.
Sixers Are On The Ropes
Coming back to Philly might help fix the Refs problem. But who knows if it gives life to the role players or reminds them how to rebound. They are now on life support. They need to win 4 of the next 5 games to move on. Not an easy task. Especially not against a scrappy Knicks team.
What is frustrating is the things they have done right. They have defended Jalen Brunson really well. Their stars have lived up to the moment. If I told you before the series that Maxey would outscore Brunson, you’d think the Sixers would win easily. But it has been the role players that made the difference in this series. And in this case, the Sixers role guys have been completely outclassed.
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