Nets 101-121 76ers: MVP favorite Joel Embiid leads Philadelphia to victory as his team puts on a demonstration in three-point shooting over Brooklyn
The Philadelphia 76ers won the opening game of the NBA playoff series against the Brooklyn Nets.
Joel Embiid and James Harden stood out for the hosts in a brilliant performance at the Wells Fargo Center – where the 76ers were relentless with their three-point shots.
Embiid was the leading scorer for 76ers with 26 points, while Harden was close behind with 23, including seven 3-pointers.
Mikal Bridges led the Nets with 30 points, but most of them came in the first half.
Brooklyn’s starless roster was ultimately no match for Embiid, Harden and a playoff-tested roster expected to make a deep run in the postseason. The Sixers had a sellout crowd of 20,913 in a frenzy from the opening tip and blew the game open in the fourth.
Joel Embiid was the leading scorer for the 76ers with 26 points against the Brooklyn Nets
Mikal Bridges started brilliantly for the Brooklyn Nets, but cooled off in the second half
Philly pulled it off even without an outstanding effort from Embiid.
Embiid made only 7 of 15 shots (and all 11 free throws) and was nervous about the edge at times.
He even got punched in the face on a missed dunk, causing him to crash onto the track in an attempt to commit a flagrant foul. Embiid also got heated when he had his arm locked up by Royce O’Neale and the two briefly argued.
No problem. Harden, who has topped the league in assists this season, caught up.
Harden’s ineffectiveness around the rim in the first half – he was 1 of 8 on 2s – was offset by his 5-of-7 shooting on 3s. He buried two 3s late in the second quarter, extending the lead to double digits.
Embiid, the NBA scoring champion, couldn’t impose his will against Brooklyn as he had to become an MVP finalist this season. He only took seven shots in the first half.
Unlike the regular season, when the Sixers were crushed by the non-Embiid minutes, the reserves came through. De’Anthony Melton, Jalen McDaniels and Georges Niang all hit 3s — the 76ers made 13 of 21 in the half — to keep them in control of Game 1.
Bridges kept Game 1 from becoming an early homecoming loss.
Bridges attended Great Valley High School in Malvern, Pennsylvania, just outside of Philadelphia, and then played three seasons with Villanova.
Bridges helped the Wildcats win two national championships – the banners of the 2016 and 2018 national championships hang from the rafters of the Wells Fargo Center. Bridges seemed to stay in the area as he was drafted by the 76ers with the number 10 pick in the 2018 draft.
Then a few embarrassments followed in quick succession: Bridges was partying draft night with his mother, who was working for the 76ers at the time.
The feel-good reunion lasted about 15 minutes and Bridges was traded to Phoenix for Zhaire Smith. Bridges is now a bona fide NBA star, while Smith burned out after only playing 13 NBA games in his career.
Philly fans can only imagine Bridges in this lineup.
He made 10 of 16 shots for 23 points in the first half and held the Nets, who opened the season with Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant and championship aspirations, within nine at halftime.