The Philadelphia 76ers faced the Dallas Mavericks in front of a home crowd on Monday at the Wells Fargo Center. The Sixers had a stellar start, leading throughout the entire first half and by a high of eleven points, 45-34, with 8:30 left in the second quarter. However, their 57-53 lead at halftime vanished with 24 points for the Mavs and only seventeen for the Sixers in the third quarter. Dallas rallied for a 118-102 win with 41 points in the final period, while Philadelphia managed 28.
Tyrese Maxey, the Sixers All-Star guard, only scored fifteen points, despite typically averaging 26 points per game. He struggled, shooting 6-16. Maxey faced foul trouble for the majority of the game, picking up three fouls in the first quarter alone.
Tobias Harris, on the other hand, played an efficient game, despite missing the 76ers previous game against the Brooklyn Nets with an illness. He scored eighteen points on eight to eleven shooting. He also contributed six assists and six rebounds.
All of the Sixers starters however, received a negative +/-. The symbol, “+/-,” standing for plus/minus, is a stat that tracks a player’s impact on the basketball court by measuring the score change (plus or minus) while each player is in the game.
The best player on the opposing team, Luka Dončić, played poorly, scoring only nineteen points, with 6-15 shooting. This point guard typically averages 34.5 points per game. His subpar performance allowed the 76ers to lead for most of the game.
Dallas’ Kyrie Irving, the best performer of the night, scored 23 points on ten to seventeen shooting, which is 58.8%. He also tallied assists and five rebounds.
Overall, the Sixers shot a dismal 43.0% field goal and 27.6% from 3-point range, costing them the game. The Mavericks, conversely, shot 48.0% and an effective 39.0% from beyond the arc. Dallas also outpassed the 76ers, assisting 28 times, while the Sixers only assisted twenty times. The Mavericks’ successful passing throughout the game was another key factor in the Sixers’ defeat. The only major stat the Sixers dominated was rebounds, in which they surpassed the Mavericks by 51-44.
The Sixers have lost six out of their last seven games as Joel Embiid, the reigning MVP, struggles with a torn meniscus. Fortunately, Joel Embiid had a successful surgery; however, there is no timetable for him to return to the Sixers. He will be reevaluated in four weeks.
The Sixers are currently fifth-seed in the Eastern Conference, trailing the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Boston Celtics, the Milwaukee Bucks, and the New York Knicks. With Philadelphia’s recent losses, it is uncertain how the remainder of their season will play out. Will they win enough games to qualify for the playoffs in time for Embiid’s return? Or will they continue their losing streak, missing the playoffs entirely?
