The Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Washington Wizards 120-112. It was a really solid win against a hot team. Everyone did well, including the safety cone the Sixers got in the Nerlens Noel trade. Just an overall great win.
Sixers and Wizards went back and forth. The game saw 7 lead changes and 10 ties. Then, the Sixers burst to a 61-49 halftime lead. They shot 52 percent from the field. Things were looking up for the Sixers. They really were. YAAAY!!!! Towards the second half of the second quarter, the Sixers began to take over.
Basically, the Wizards spent the 3rd quarter being behind by a range of 17 and 9 points. Every time they made a little push, the Sixers would hold them off. Fantastic. Quite honestly, the Sixers looked like the team that had won 18 of its last 23 games. They really looked like they outclassed the Wizards in every way. It was pretty awesome to watch.
In the 4th quarter, things really took off. The Sixers' lead blew up to 22 and the Wizards looked like they simply quit. Just a long night for them. Ah well. The Sixers just ran away with this one. In the end, it looked like they should have been up by more. Technical fouls started flying. It was crazy. Then, the Wizards woke up. Down by 22 points in the 4th quarter, they stormed back to make it a 4 point game. It was…amazing how steadily the Wizards made this push. The Sixers managed to hold them off for the win, but it should not have ended like that and here's hoping Brett Brown addresses this. You can blame some of this on poor officiating, but Sixers still should've been able to put this away and avoid this last minute scenario.
One of the new members of the team, acquired in the Nerlens Noel fiasco trade, didn't play in the game, but still made an impact. The safety cone, named Reggie Orange, impressed many fans as it stood in the Wells Fargo Center parking lot. One of the parking attendants said, "Reggie did an outstanding job, er, standing in the parking lot. Very professional. We're happy it's part of the team." No doubt, Reggie's contributions were felt in this win. No doubt at all. It would appear that even though the Sixers gave up defense on the court, they got it back in the parking lot.
Three players for the Sixers scored at least 20 points. Robert Covington had 25 with 11 rebounds. Dario Saric had 20 with 11 rebounds. Gerald Henderson had 20 points as well. The Wizards were led by Bradley Beal who had 40 points on 60 percent shooting. Have mercy. John Wall helped out with 29 points, 14 assists, and 8 rebounds.
The Sixers take on the New York Knicks tomorrow night for the battle of seemingly poorly run teams. 7:30PM ET. They'll be playing in New York.
