Sixers Survive Their Own Third-Quarter Horror Show. 4–1, Baby!
By Jawn Kruk | Side Jawn Sports
Apparently, a normal Wednesday night was asking too much.
The Sixers went into Indiana, spent the third quarter making everybody question their life choices, then remembered they’re allowed to play basketball in the fourth. Philadelphia escaped with a 114–109 win over the Pacers and improved to 4–1.
I’ll take the win. I would also appreciate watching one without needing to pace around the living room.
The good: Maxey knows what time it is
Tyrese Maxey finished with 27 points and buried two threes inside the final 90 seconds. The second put the Sixers ahead 112–106 with 46 seconds remaining.
That’s the guy I want with the ball when everything gets tight. There’s something comforting about watching Maxey take a big shot while the rest of us are busy bargaining with the television.
And he had help. Joel Embiid delivered 21 points and 11 rebounds, Jaylen Brown added 20 points and 6 boards, and LeBron James contributed 13 points with 10 assists. That’s a whole lot of experience and talent to lean on when a game starts slipping away.
Anfernee Simons, thank you for your service
Simons supplied 20 points off the bench. Those points matter in a five-point win, especially on a night when the offense took an entire quarter off.
You need somebody outside the headliners to make the other team pay. Getting that kind of scoring from Simons gives this offense another way to survive when things get ugly.
And, buddy, things got ugly.
The bad: Did anybody tell them halftime ended?
The Sixers led 62–52 at the break after VJ Edgecombe hit a half-court buzzer-beater. Beautiful. A little momentum. Something to feel good about.
Naturally, they followed that by letting Indiana score the first 17 points of the third quarter.
Seventeen unanswered. What a thoughtful gift. Did we bring a card, too?
Indiana won the quarter 36–13. Philadelphia shot 5-for-21 and turned a ten-point halftime lead into an 88–75 deficit.
Apparently, the halftime adjustment was to make the basket look like a coffee mug.
I don’t need perfection in October. I do need a team with this much talent to avoid spending twelve minutes looking like somebody assembled it in the parking lot five minutes before tipoff. You cannot keep asking the fourth quarter to clean up whatever the hell that was.
The response: They actually cleaned it up
Credit where it’s due: the Sixers answered with a 39–21 fourth quarter.
After that third, they could have folded. Instead, they gave themselves a chance, got the game back, and let Maxey deliver late.
That’s encouraging. Being able to recover matters. So does figuring out why the recovery keeps becoming necessary. Both things can be true while we enjoy the win.
Next up: the Knicks at home Friday. Outside of the Bird Lady from Home Alone 2, my patience for that crowd remains extremely limited.
Bring the fourth-quarter Sixers. Please leave the third-quarter version in Indiana.
4–1, baby. Now somebody teach this team that halftime comes with an expiration time.
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