SALT LAKE CITY — Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris stepped up in Joel Embiid’s absence.
It just wasn’t enough against the red-shot Utah Jazz. Utah defeated the 76ers, 134-123, Monday night at the Vivint Arena on a night when Simmons and Harris combined to score 78 points.
Simmons finished with a career-high 42 points to go with 12 assists and nine rebounds. The two-time All-Star shot 15-for-26 from the field and made 12 of 13 foul shots. His 15 made field goals were a career high.
Harris added a season-high 36 points to go with 10 rebounds.
Jordan Clarkson came off the bench to lead the Jazz with 40 points.
The loss dropped the Sixers to 18-10. They finished 1-3 on their four-game West Coast road trip, which concluded with three straight losses.
This matches their longest losing streak of the season. They lost three straight to the Brooklyn Nets, Denver Nuggets, and Atlanta Hawks from Jan. 7-11. Back then, the Eastern Conference leaders were dealing with injuries and players being in the NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
Embiid was a late scratch Monday with back tightness.
As a result, Sixers’ “facilitator” Simmons started at center in place of Embiid. Mike Scott started at power forward. Harris moved to small forward. Danny Green and Seth Curry slid down to the shooting guard and point guard positions, respectively.
Without Embiid, this outcome was closer than expected.
The Jazz, at 23-5, have the league’s best record. They’ve been close to invincible, winning eight straight and 19 of their last 20 games.
But it was not decided until late because Simmons came through with his most aggressive performance on the season. Nineteen of the fourth-year veteran’s points came in the first quarter on 7-for-7 shooting. Harris also had a solid first, scoring 14 points.
Thanks to the duo’s combined 33 points, the Sixers took a 42-35 lead into the second quarter. The Sixers shot 72.7% in the first quarter.
Utah, however, went on to outscore the Sixers, 37-24 in the second quarter to take a 72-66 halftime lead. The Jazz took the lead for good after Derrick Favors made a pair of foul shots to make it a 61-59 with 3 minutes, 48 seconds left in the half.
All-Star Donovan Mitchell had 24 points. Joe Ingles added 20 points for the winners.
