The Philadelphia 76ers continued their three-game road trip with a stop in Chicago against the Bulls. Coming into the night, the teams were tied atop the Eastern Conference at 5-1; by the final buzzer, that title would belong solely to Chicago.
Tyrese Maxey came out of the gate like a bolt of lightning, putting up a quick six points in just over two minutes of action. Maxey trailed former Sixer Robert Covington by two made threes for the second spot on the Sixers’ list of all-time made three-pointers.
Not long after the halfway point of the quarter, the now 25-year-old guard hit his third three of the game, the 726th of his career, passing Covington for sole possession of second place. Maxey now trails only Allen Iverson (855) for the franchise all-time lead, and is expected to break that record before the All-Star break this season.
Maxey’s offensive energy was replicated by his fellow Sixers, as the team combined for a strong 45 points in the first quarter.
Another major subplot of the story in this game was the season debut of second-year guard Jared McCain. Playing just 15 minutes in a restricted role as he gets his sea legs back under him, McCain went scoreless in four shots, but did pick up a couple of assists.
As for Joel Embiid, it was far from his most efficient game, especially in the second half. In fairness, that was the story for the entire team.
The Sixers quickly accumulated a 24-point lead in the first half, and for a time, it seemed Philadelphia was in line to coast to their second straight victory, but the Bulls would not be put away so easily. Chicago held Philadelphia to just 20 points in the third quarter and to a prolonged streak lasting over six minutes without a field goal in the fourth. That streak lasted through the end of the game.
Down the stretch of the fourth quarter, the Sixers were clearly out of gas, committing one poor decision after another. Tyrese Maxey, the NBA’s leader in minutes played per game, was especially worn in the game's close, coming up noticeably short on several shots.
With just over 10 seconds on the clock, the Bulls worked the ball in the half-court, finding former Sixer Nikola Vučević in the corner for three, giving the Bulls a two-point lead. Finding Quentin Grimes with the open look for three, the Sixers ultimately died by the three, a risk you run when you’ve lived by it up until this point this season.
Philadelphia next travels to Cleveland for a matchup against the Cavaliers. Cleveland star guard Darius Garland is expected to make his debut in the matchup, which is scheduled for 7 p.m. EST.
