The Philadelphia 76ers appeared dead in the water Sunday night in Indianapolis. They went down 20 points along the way without their best player in Joel Embiid and it looked like they would continue to be without a win without the big man.
Then Tobias Harris got stuck, the team went to a zone defense and managed to gather and defeat the Indiana Pacers 119-110 for an impressive victory, without the big guy. This was a game he would certainly lose in the past and was mainly due to the fact that Harris refused to let the Sixers lose in it.
“It was great,” said coach Doc Rivers. “We launched our punch-punch-4 series. What I liked about this I did on both sides of the floor. Our boys executed it, it gives us space, we thought it organized us, and Tobias was very efficient. ”
Harris finished with 27 points on 10-for-19 shooting and scored 10 in the fourth quarter to help Philadelphia return to the game. This was the performance that an All-Star player played and showed that he has the right mentality.
“It’s a winning mentality,” Harris explained. “I was there today to get buckets to help our team win and we started calling a few sets for me to come into the block to go to work and take advantage of the moment and the opportunity … For me, it’s just fourth quarter, game, so, with Joel out, he just gets to one place and takes a bucket for the team and comes back. ”
Matisse Thybulle, Furkan Korkmaz and Dwight Howard also played a role in this victory. Thybulle was a threat on defense and Korkmaz managed to take a few huge shots while Howard was great on the bench, but Harris was still the main catalyst for the offense to make him go again.
“I said the other day, Tobias is putting on a show and I think we just have to sit back and be happy,” Thybulle said. “He does a great job and does everything we ask of him and much more. Play at both ends at a high level. ”
With Embiid out, Harris was the team’s top scorer in this situation and Howard made sure he knew that when he got back on the floor.
“Tobias came into the game and I went to him, I said, ‘Hey, don’t sit down, no one can guard you on the floor. Go get some buckets, ”Howard explained. “He did this. He didn’t settle down, he attacked the basket, put pressure on the rim, put pressure on the referees and played big games. ”
Howard added that he has a new nickname for Harris.
This was an impressive victory overall and Harris certainly continues to make a serious case for being in the All-Star team in the Eastern Conference. Now, they will have to go ahead and complete the strong trip on Wednesday against the Charlotte Hornets.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!