Tirese Mackey, Adem Bona stand out in the fifth consecutive defeat

The Philadelphia 76ers (15-25) began the journey by taking on the Indiana Pacers (24-19). The Sixers’ performance wasn’t great, but they found themselves on a tough drive and held on to make this game close until the final few minutes. Final score: 115-102.

Joel Embiid doesn’t count again since his left knee is causing more problems. He is for this trip and potentially more time. Paul George and Gershon Yabusule were also sidelined, with the latter missing his first game of the season. Andre Drummond returned from a six-game absence as the Sixers’ new starting lineup hit the court in the heart.

Makey leads

At a time when this season was still very much trouble, but there was still hope, Tyrese Maxey lit up the Pacers for the Phillies’ first win. His 45-point outing was an early glimpse of what he could do as the main guy. Unfortunately for Philly, he struggled as a lead option and only once came within five points of his previous total.

Andrew Nembhard pressured Maxey in the backcourt, refusing to give the 76ers star an uncontested start with or without the ball. His individual defense was strong and the Pacers, who wanted to make sure Maxey didn’t beat them, didn’t have a good answer when he went to the bench. He raced to the rim for a couple of early buckets after Nembhardt’s pressure kept him away.

The realization that Maxey’s elite three-point shooting came primarily as a result of the great play of his teammates became a step clearer, as it has been all season with Embiid and George coming in and out of the lineup. His off-the-dribble shot from deep is still a major work in progress. The 76ers’ inability to get him open on catch-and-shoot looks makes it even more challenging to see one go down and build on it.

McKay came up with fast breaks after the 76ers defense kicked the ball away. He led all scorers with 15 at halftime and continued to attack the rim in the second half. Even if his three-ball doesn’t fall, he’ll still have enough respect to hit the defense in the teeth.

Again taking into account the context that the 76ers’ offense is uninspiring, McKay still needs to loosen up a bit as a playmaker. Even with his team’s poor three-point shooting, he must continue to grow as a facilitator. The final line for Maxi: 28 points, one rebound, three assists on 10-23 shooting.

Who appears as a creator? Adem Bona, for example

Without George’s ball control and Jabusele’s comfort as a top distributor and pick-and-roll/pop option (plus Embiid, who does both), the 76ers lacked a frightening amount of offense. Maxi had the green light to do what he needed to do, but he also needed help. Shocking: He didn’t get enough.

Adem Bona, it must be noted, was fantastic in this game. While he wasn’t exactly the focal point of the offense, he made the most of his touches to outrun and, more emphatically, jump over the Pacers’ defense. A big fan of dunks for safety, he crashed the glass hard and ended several Sixers possessions with explosive two-handed shots. His night ended with 12 points on 5-5 shooting.

In a move that would have been surprising even if they weren’t the only two active centers on the 15-man roster, Drummond and Bona played together in the second quarter. That lineup didn’t do much, Bona faked surrender and hammered home for one of the biggest highlights of the night. He also put in a backdoor feed for Makey for a layup.

Kelly Oubre Jr. stepped up and hit some shots, scoring 18 points on 6-13 shooting. The Pacers played him with three and he made them pay. His results in transition also helped. Ricky Council IV also had 18 points, shooting 3-9 from behind and inside the arc.

This was definitely a basketball game

The Pacers were sloppy on both ends, and the 76ers took advantage, jumping out to an 8-1 lead after just over two minutes. Indiana responded with a 10-2 run to take the lead with the help of some bad misses at the rim and Philly’s porous, careless defense. Help defense, rebounding, closing, rebounding — it was all bad from the visitors’ side.

Those little details matter no matter who’s on the court, but, especially with a team ravaged by injuries, the 76ers couldn’t avoid focusing on them. While they still forced a ton of turnovers and ran in transition, they were too undisciplined to get ahead of a Pacers team that wasn’t too disciplined itself. As well as they move the ball, their defense was not at all intimidating.

With a free-flowing offense that went from one action to another and shared the ball beautifully, the Pacers avoided a lack of good looks. They shot terribly from three, but had so many high-percentage shots and offensive boards that they still led by five after the first quarter. That lead doubled in the second quarter, then evaporated.

Indiana can click on offense, but they rattle on defense. The Sixers made it easy for themselves by scoring off turnovers, but they were also very effective in the half. But then they made it difficult for themselves by not being able to secure rebounds on defense. These teams were perfect opposites in several ways – struggling in an area where the other team was good and vice versa. All the different ways they succeeded and failed came together in a messy, tightly contested game.

The Pacers started to run away with the game on a 20-9 run that started in the third quarter and carried into the fourth. But then the Sixers fought back with a lineup that featured Pete Nance at center. The deficit was cut to just six, but Philly just didn’t have the firepower to complete the comeback.

The 76ers return to action tomorrow night against the Milwaukee Bucks.