PHILADELPHIA _ It was ugly.
There's no denying that. It was ugly and will be one of the 76ers' more forgettable wins. But in actuality, it may also be an important win.
A 107-86 decision Monday over the Utah Jazz showed that the Sixers can win even when playing horribly.
They improved to 9-7 on a night when they made a season-low four 3-pointers on 15 attempts (26.7 percent). Even that was misleading. JJ Redick was 2-for-2 from that distance. The rest of the team went 2-for-13. And those two 3-pointers came late in the game by Robert Covington.
The Sixers also made just 68.2 percent (15 of 22) of their foul shots. They missed some point-blank baskets near the rim. And there is the fact that the Sixers looked flat and uninspired in the first half.
But they were able to hold off the Jazz (7-11) in large part because of Ben Simmons. The rookie point guard scored 22 of his career-high 27 points in the second half. Simmons also finished the game with 10 rebounds, four steals, four turnovers and a career-low two assists. It was his fourth consecutive and 11th double-double of the season.
Joel Embiid, who was a game-time decision, added 15 points, 11 rebounds, two blocks and two turnovers for his seventh double-double of the season.
The center was involved in perhaps the most exciting moment of the game.
With 4 minutes, 13 seconds remaining, Embiid blocked Donovan Mitchell's shot and yelled, "Get that (stuff) out of here" after Mitchell fell underneath the basket. Mitchell got up and shoved Embiid to the court. The crowd went crazy, chanting 'MVP" and "Trust the Process." The Jazz rookie was called for a technical foul.
But the Sixers were sluggish at the start.
They missed all eight of their 3-point attempts and shot just 69.2 percent from the foul lone in the first half. Yet, they were still up by 11 points (47-36) heading into the third quarter.
This was the first time the Sixers failed to make a 3-pointer in the first half all season. Their previous low was three.
On Monday, the Sixers ended up missing their first nine before Redick's 28-footer with 7 minutes, 21 seconds left in the third quarter made it a 62-42 advantage.
Both teams had a Who's Who of players sidelined by injuries.
The Sixers' Markelle Fultz (right shoulder soreness), Nik Stauskas (sprained right ankle), and Justin Anderson (shin splints) are still sidelined. Because of the injuries, the Sixers called up two-way guard Jacob Pullen from the Delaware 87ers.
Meanwhile, the Jazz were without Joe Johnson (sore right wrist), Dante Exum (left shoulder surgery), Rudy Gobert (right tibia bruise).
