The Paul George-Joel Embiid duo does a lot of damage against the Bucks

After theirs 37 points of humiliation suffered the day before in Charlotte, the Sixers were obliged to respond. Especially against a depleted Bucks team from superstars Giannis Antetokounmpo. The reaction happened. Absent against Hornets, Paul George (32 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists) i Joel Embiid (29 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists) were the driving force behind this great victory (139-122).

The second scored 18 points in the first quarter alone and enabled the home team to start in the best offensive condition. Only his direct opponent, Miles Turner (31 points), also decided to make him work on defense. He wasn’t the only one since he’s next to the headquarters, Ryan Rollins (24 points), Kyle Kuzma (17 points) et Bobby Portis (17 points and 12 rebounds) were productive.

The home team took the lead after 12 (42-34), then 24 minutes into the game (71-62), and the rest were under threat from the visitors. Author of 10 points in a row for his team, George thought to give the Sixers more breathing room. But in this matchup where the offense took over the defense, the Bucks always found a way to respond to stay in touch.

We had to wait until the start of the last quarter (106-95) to see the Sixers gain more momentum. Paul George then made two more baskets for the win, and then Jared McCain (17 points) called the party with… three straight 3-pointers to put Milwaukee’s head under water (126-104).

Stunned, the visitors still managed to claw their way back to within ten points, pushing Nick Nurse to sack Joel Embiid in the closing minutes. There, after a game-winning drive from the pivot, VJ Edgecombe signed a dagger mode tap dunk to put Milwaukee away for good.

WHAT TO REMEMBER

Paul George close to his season high. The Sixers winger, who scored almost as much in one night as his last three outings combined, was impressive in his skill throughout the evening. The former Clippers player didn’t have to dabble much in the Bucks’ racket as his long-distance success was there. After a low-key first period, George started to catch fire in the third quarter to finish with 9/15 3-pointers (11/21 shooting overall). It was just his second game this season with 30 or more points, following a career-best 35 in Atlanta in mid-December.

Miles Turner released. The Bucks’ pivot was clearly very motivated by the idea of ​​playing against Joel Embiid. Their duel was particularly intense in the first quarter, when Turner, after a “circus shot”, first started to confront the opponent under the circle. But Embiid ended up scoring in the second. The former Pacers center continued his efforts to finish with 31 points, his best in a Bucks uniform. Before this game, Turner, Milwaukee’s leading recruit in the offseason, was averaging 12.4 points, his lowest average since the 2019-20 season.

Spark Jared McCain. Seriously overshadowed by VJ Edgecombe this season, the one who emerged as one of the revelations of the previous season in Philly, had a series of distasteful outings for several weeks (3 points average in 10 games), before his 16-point game in the loss in Charlotte. He was a real spark for his team tonight, making a total of four three-pointers early in the fourth quarter. His 17 points are his second best mark of the year.

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How to read statistics? Min = Minute; Shots = Shots Successful / Shots Attempted; 3 points = 3 points / attempt 3 points; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive jump; T = Total number of jumps; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal mistakes; Int = intercepts; Bp = lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = point difference when the player is on the court; Points = Points; Rating: player rating calculated based on positive actions – negative actions.