DETROIT � The 76ers and the Pistons both had lofty expectations in the preseason. Thus far, both squads haven't quite lived up to the hype.
The Sixers, however, still have a chance to turn things around. Detroit, meanwhile, has a lot more work to do.
That was obvious in the Sixers' 125-109 victory over the Pistons on Monday night at Little Caesars Arena.
Tobias Harris finished with a season-high 35 points on 14-of-20 shots. The power forward made 4-of-6 three-pointers.
Harris almost got into a little scuffle with a seemingly frustrated Blake Griffin. The two had to be separated with 5 minutes, 21 seconds remaining and received double-technical fouls.
But Harris wasn't the only Sixer who lit up Detroit.
Ben Simmons posted his second triple-double of the season with 16 points, 17 assists and 13 rebounds. It was his 24th triple-double in his first three seasons.
Meanwhile, Furkan Korkmaz scored 21 points off the bench, and Joel Embiid had 20 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks hours after being listed as questionable with an illness.
The Sixers (22-10) have won two straight after losing their previous three games. Meanwhile, the Pistons (11-20) extended their losing streak to five games.
But it's hard for Detroit to get a rhythm with all of their injuries.
On this night, the team that was projected to make the playoffs had five players _ Jordan Bone (left knee soreness), Bruce Brown (bilateral calf soreness), Reggie Jackson (lumbar spine stress reaction), Luke Kennard (bilateral knee soreness) and Khyri Thomas (right foot surgery) _ out with injuries.
Three others _ Griffin (flu), Derrick Rose (left knee soreness), Christian Wood (left knee bone bruise) _ played despite being listed on the injury report earlier in the day.
Meanwhile, the Sixers were without reserve guard Matisse Thybulle, who will be sidelined at least two weeks with a right knee sprain and bone bruise.
Embiid looked sluggish at the start, but quickly found his groove. He made his first five shots en route to shooting 7-of-9. He made all four of his first-half field-goal attempts, and converted his first shot _ a three-pointer _ in the third quarter. Embiid went on to miss an 18-foot jumper on the Sixers' next possession
His matchup against Andre Drummond didn't disappoint.
The Pistons center finished with 27 points to go with 9 rebounds. He came off the bench due to missing Monday morning's shootaround.
Griffin struggled after missing the Pistons' last two games. The All-Star power forward had 8 points while missing 12-of-14 shots.
