Embiid Dominates Game with Impressive Stats in Victory

The Philadelphia 76ers (45-35) faced the Detroit Pistons (13-66) in the first of three home games to wrap up their regular season. The Sixers got several players back, including Joel Embiid after a one-game absence, and won 120-102.

Let’s break down the 76ers’ win over the Pistons.

76ers player notes:

Joel Embiid: 37 points, 11 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 blocks, 3 steals, 12-22 FG shooting

After missing the second game of a back-to-back, Embiid continued to make strides. He looked great attacking defenders off the dribble and making plays that came as a result of his scoring gravity. Sure, the opponent in front of him was not very tough and his third quarter was really bad. But he did plenty to get the 76ers the win. When he’s not super great all game long but still notches a 30-10 night, you know he’s really on his way back.

De’Anthony Melton: 5 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2-9 FG shooting

Melton played for the first time since February 27, taking a slow and steady approach to rehabbing his back injury and finally making it back on the court. He shot the ball poorly but simply made it back to the court and played in long stints, a great sign as the postseason approaches.

Buddy Hield: 18 points, 6 rebounds, 0 assists, 6-12 FG shooting

Hield shooting the ball with confidence and attacking off the bounce was precisely what Nick Nurse wanted him to do. He hadn’t scored this much since before the All-Star break and was ripping nets from deep time after time. While he did have some bad misses in the paint, this could be a step in the right direction.

Pistons player notes:

Jaden Ivey: 25 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 8-17 FG shooting

Ivey put his speed and strength to good use by darting up the floor each time he could. His shooting off the dribble looked quite promising, too, as he provided one of the best three-point-shooting performances of his career.

Game recap:

Back at home after a clean sweep on a three-game road trip, the 76ers looked to pick up an easy win that would allow them to ascend higher in the Eastern Conference standings. The standings race is getting tighter and higher as the final week of the regular season begins. For the first time in a while, the Sixers were playing a team more injury-riddled than they were. It also happened to be one of the absolute worst teams in the NBA. This was shaping up to be an easy win for Philly.

Tyrese Maxey and Kyle Lowry were ruled out but Melton was available to return for his first game since February 27. Tobias Harris also returned and started alongside Cam Payne, Kelly Oubre Jr., Nico Batum and Embiid. Among the players ruled out for the Pistons were Cade Cunningham, Ausar Thompson, Isaiah Stewart, Simone Fontecchio and Quentin Grimes.

1st half

The Pistons fired out of the gate with some feisty defense. Jalen Duren fought hard with Embiid to get him out of his spots and the guards, Marcus Sasser and Jaden Ivey, were aggressive on the ball. Duren committed a pair of early fouls against Embiid, bringing James Wiseman into the game. Embiid and Harris did the heavy lifting for Philly’s offense early on, combining to score 12 of Philly’s first 14 points (and Harris tallying the assist on the other bucket).

Detroit looked to play fast, taking advantage of its youth and athleticism with Ivey as the head of the snake. The second-year guard got off to a nice start but his teammates shooting 1-10 negated his 3-4 shooting. Ricky Council IV, the second sub of the game for the 76ers after Buddy Hield, gave Philly some athletic juice to match him. Embiid looked spry early on as both a driver and playmaker, spinning to the rim for a nifty layup and dropping dimes on backdoor cuts.

The 76ers still aren’t having Embiid return to his typical rotation of playing the whole first quarter, subbing him out for Paul Reed after roughly nine minutes. Jeff Dowtin Jr. also checked in. The two linked up for a dunk as the Pistons once again fell asleep off the ball. The Sixers passed the ball around the horn in the final seconds of the first quarter and Council drilled a corner triple, letting his defender fly by him and draining the open shot.

De’Anthony Melton started the second quarter, smiling and rubbing his hands as the crowd cheered for his return. He swished his first shot attempt, a corner three off of the feed from Embiid. The Detroit defense seemed to prefer playing Embiid straight up with only a little cheating over from help defenders. But they continued to be too late on rotations and allowed the Sixers away from the ball to slip into open space.

When Embiid subbed out, the Sixers offense looked unable to crack the Pistons’ defense. The big man only took a few minutes to rest before returning, promptly burying a triple off of the pick-and-pop. He worked his way up to 20 with ease on top of making plays for teammates.

At halftime, the 76ers led 64-52.

2nd half

Embiid was a bit sloppy to start the second half, committing three fouls and losing control of the ball on a fancy dribbling sequence. He finally helped the 76ers with a wild circus shot, chucking the ball backward over his shoulder from the elbow as he fell to the floor. This, plus an Oubre putback, free throws from Embiid and a free throw from Harris, was all Philly could muster up on offense in the first five minutes of the half while Detroit scored 15 points.

This is a normal bucket. Move on, find a new slant pic.twitter.com/lkn7LzdAdZ https://t.co/yVRXkzIcrR

— Sam DiGiovanni (@BySamDiGiovanni) April 10, 2024

The Pistons had captured the energy and managed to trim the Sixers’ lead down to four. Embiid came up hobbling a bit after reaching for a loose ball, sending a shockwave of concern throughout the Wells Fargo Center. He remained in the game following a timeout but looked noticeably less mobile and more reluctant to leave his feet.

Hield, Council and Dowtin once again entered the game before Melton in the second half. Embiid, clearly not sick of the trick shots, flipped a shot over his left shoulder with his back facing the rim. Reed was there to make the play an alley-oop. Embiid was subbed out shortly thereafter.

Some big plays jazzed the Sixers up as they increased their lead. Dowtin took a bad pass the other way for an and-one layup. Oubre rotated to the rim to deny Wiseman a dunk. Hield drained a corner triple in an inbound pass from Dowtin. Oubre scored a pair of buckets at the end of the third quarter to put Philly up by 14 heading into the fourth.

With Embiid and Melton subbed back in, the 76ers spent a few minutes nursing their lead. Embiid locked in defensively and Dowtin made critical passes to set up Embiid and Hield for three. The Sixers maintained control throughout the fourth quarter, sending in the reserves with plenty of time left. Philly had improved its winning streak to six. The last time that happened this season was when Embiid dropped 70 points.

Assorted observations:

• Melton getting a warm reception from the crowd in his return was very cool. He doesn’t have much time to get warmed up for the playoffs but he could be a key player to have off the bench once they begin.
• The desire for Council’s contract to get converted from a two-way deal to a standard one is understandable. But while that’s in the works, the Sixers deserve credit for doing so with Dowtin already. He’s a dang good player who makes smart, winning plays.

The 76ers now have two consecutive days off for the first time since the end of February. They’ll face the Orlando Magic on Friday night.