DETROIT — The Philadelphia 76ers were cruising in the second half as they led by 12 in the third quarter on the road in the Motor City, but the short-handed Detroit Pistons dug deep and rallied to beat the Sixers 114-105. The win was Detroit’s ninth straight as the Sixers fell to 0-2 in NBA Cup play which seriously dwindles their chances of advancing to the knockout round.
Tyrese Maxey had 31 points and six rebounds for Philadelphia. VJ Edgecombe had 18 points and seven rebounds, Andre Drummond had 12 and 11 rebounds, Quentin Grimes added nine points, and Dominick Barlow had 10 points and eight rebounds in his return to the floor. Justin Edwards added 13 off the bench.
Here are the three biggest takeaways for the Sixers following the loss to the Pistons:
Issues with Detroit’s physicality
The Sixers had a tough time against the physical play of the Pistons. When it looked like they were going to pull away and win the game, the Pistons dug deep and they played with a certain style and physicality that Philadelphia just couldn’t match. One has to give a lot of credit to coach JB Bickerstaff and Co. as they have found a way to play a certain style no matter what is going on, but the Sixers certainly let that physical play bother them and they weren’t able to respond.
“We just have to do a little bit better job of hitting some of our pressure releases,” said coach Nick Nurse. “I don’t think we did a good enough job of playing, running through the ball, playing on the catch. Once we did get it, they did a good job of staying in front of us and we didn’t get a whole lot of stuff back cut-wise. We got a few, but we probably need a few more, and we just have to finish through some of those hits too. We had some layups, kinda driving layups to the outside of the lane. They, obviously, are making contact, but we got to play through some of that stuff.”
Added Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart on Philadelphia:
We applied a little more pressure. Keep applying that pressure, and they laid down for us. So, we came in, we did that. We know that’s what we had to do to get the job done, and we wanted this win so bad tonight.
Barlow making an impact
In his first game back from a right elbow laceration, Barlow hopped off the bench and gave the Sixers a big lift on the floor. They missed his ability to make the hustle plays and give Philadelphia a big boost in the rebounding department and he was able to give the Sixers some help with his shooting ability and the fact that he plays with so much energy gives them a big boost in all areas of the game as well. It was certainly good to have him back on the floor–especially, once Kelly Oubre Jr. went down with the hyperextended left knee.
“I thought he was really good,” Nurse added. “I thought he was excellent which is why he ended up playing almost 30 minutes. It felt like we, obviously, lost Kelly. It didn’t seem like Watt (Trendon Watford) had much going tonight either. So, we kinda got pressed into playing him a little bit, but he also in his first stint played great, and we started him in the second half. He played great, too. It was good to have him out there. I thought he made some nice plays.”
A missed opportunity
The Sixers needed to find a way to finish this off. Every game matters in the NBA and they led the Pistons by double digits in the second half. A Pistons team missing their All-Star guard, their second option, and a slew of other starters and key rotation pieces. Yes, Detroit has a ton of depth and coach Bickerstaff has them playing terrific basketball, but the Sixers certainly let this one slip away.
“We have our share of guys out, too, right?” said Nurse. “I look at it as any time you get double digits in the second half, you got yourself a chance to win a game, that’s probably more of a missed opportunity than who was out there.”