WASHINGTON — James Harden scored 23 points and had 17 assists as the Philadelphia 76ers clawed back to .500 with a 118-111 victory over the Washington Wizards on Monday night (Tuesday, Manila time) despite missing Joel Embiid.
Tyrese Maxey added 28 points for Philadelphia. Georges Niang sank all four of his 3-pointers in the second half — including three in the fourth quarter — and finished with 12 points as the 76ers won their third straight to move to 4-4.
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Embiid, the back-to-back NBA MVP finalist, missed out due to non-COVID-19 related illness.
Kristaps Porzingis scored 32 points and Bradley Beal added 19 for Washington, which lost its third in a row and second at home.
The Wizards closed to within five inside the final minute after going down as many as 18 early in the fourth quarter.
Tyrese Maxey goes 11 for 22 in 34 minutes of action.
The 76ers took charge on a 27-6 run that spanned the late third and early fourth, during which the Wizards made just one field goal.
Harden and Tobias Harris hit layups on back-to-back possessions to start it, the latter giving Philadelphia a 72-71 lead with 4:04 left in the third.
Niang's first 3 made it 82-73 with 1:01 left in the third, and by the time he sank his third it stretched the lead to 95-77 early in the fourth.
TIP-INS
76ers: Improve to 2-0 without Embiid, who also missed Philadelphia's 112-90 win at Toronto on Oct. 28. ... Harris and De'Anthony Meldon had 16 points each. ... Without Embiid, Philadelphia finished with zero second-chance points.
Wizards: G Monte Morris moved to 3001 career points — and eight on the night — when he hit a 3-pointer with 2:17 left in the first half. He finished with 19 ... F Anthony Gill made his fifth career start and first since
SCRATCH THAT, REVERSE IT
Kyle Kuzma looked set to give Washington a 66-65 lead with 6:20 left in the third when he took Monte Morris' outlet pass on the break and honed in on an uncontested dunk. Kuzma attempted a reverse windmill finish that slammed off the back iron and fell for a 76ers rebound.
UP NEXT
The 76ers and Wizards meet again on Wednesday in Philadelphia.
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