PHILADELPHIA — The 76ers did the unthinkable to Ben Simmons and the Brooklyn Nets.
Minus their best three players, the Sixers didn’t have a chance against their former teammate and the Eastern Conference rival squad. Or so almost everyone thought.
Yet the Sixers prevailed, 115-106, Tuesday night in what was, as expected, a hostile environment for Simmons at the Wells Fargo Center.
With the win, Philly improved to a winning record of 9-8. The Sixers have won four of their last five games.
Tobias Harris, who sat out the previous game with an injury, led all scorers with 24 points to go with six rebounds and three assists. De’Anthony Melton added 22 points while Paul Reed contributed 19 points and 10 rebounds off the bench. Meanwhile, Georges Niang ( 16 points) and Shake Milton (16) were their other double-digit scorers.
Displaying balance and sharpshooting, the Sixers shot 50% on three-pointers. Not bad, considering perennial All-Star Joel Embiid (left foot sprain) and James Harden (right foot strain) and rising star Tyrese Maxey (left foot fracture) are currently all sidelined.
Kyrie Irving led Brooklyn (8-10) with 23 points. Kevin Durant had 20 points, six assists and five rebounds, while Simmons had 11 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds.
Simmons’ return
In his playing return to Philadelphia, Simmons was far from fazed.
Sixers fans’ boos were loud and frequent in the direction of the Nets point guard. Maybe they should have used a different tactic against the former Sixer Philadelphians have grown to hate.
That’s because their noise had zero impact on his performance.
But the sellout crowds’ reactions were expected in the former Sixer’s first game in Philly since forcing a trade to Brooklyn on Feb. 10. Nets coach Jacque Vaughn even had people in a room laughing about the situation around 90 minutes before the game.
“This a Vince Vaughn Earmuffs Night tonight,” he said. “That’s what that is. And it ain’t got nothing to do with the weather either.”
The Sixers faithful booed Simmons as he led the Nets on the floor, whenever he touched the ball, made a play and subbed in and out of the game. They even chanted ‘F— Ben Simmons” numerous times during the game.
One of those times came while the officials reviewed a foul Niang committed on him under the Nets basket with 48.1 seconds left. The foul was upgraded to a Flagrant 1.
Simmons may have endeared himself slightly to fans when he did miss a pair of foul shots early in the third quarter, enabling Sixers fans to receive free Chick-fil-A as part of the “Bricken for Chicken” promotion. If an opponent misses two consecutive foul shots in the second half, fans will get free chicken Nuggets. Simmons made 3 of 6 foul shots for the game.
Harris’ scare
Harris had a little scare when he rolled his ankle with 41 seconds into the second half.
The Sixers forward fell to the court and remained there for a couple of minutes, clearly in pain. After getting up, Harris went to the locker room to be evaluated and returned with 7:32 left in the third quarter.
Thybulle’s ankle
Matisse Thybulle tried to play on his bad left ankle. However, the Sixers guard was only able to play 3 minutes, 22 seconds - all in the second quarter.
Thybulle could barely run up and down the court. He had no lift on his ankle. He made one of three three-pointers, but it was obvious he was struggling. Thybulle didn’t return to the bench after intermission. He finished with three points.
This marked the third straight game that he was unable to play for long because of his ankle.
Up Next
The Sixers travel to Charlotte to face the Hornets Wednesday at the Spectrum Center. The Hornets (4-14) have lost three straight and 11 of their last 12 games. The Sixers have won their last eight meetings in Charlotte.
