The 76ers lost 82-99 to the Heat on the road today, ending their five-game winning streak.
Before today's game, the 76ers were in second place in the East, two wins behind the Heat, and if they could beat the Heat, they could narrow the win gap to one game. Unfortunately, the 76ers failed to beat the Heat today, but instead made the win difference to 3 games. The 76ers currently continue to be second in the East with a 39-24 loss, while the Heat are firmly in first place in the East with a 43-22 loss.
The reason why the 76ers lost to the Heat today has a lot to do with Harden's absence. During a five-game winning streak, the 76ers have scored at least 120 points in five consecutive games. In the first 57 games of the season, the 76ers have also scored 120 points only six times in total. After Harden made his debut, the 76ers averaged 126.5 points in the past four games, and Harden, Embiid and Maxi scored 20+ in four consecutive games, scoring more than 80 points in four consecutive occasions.
In today's game, the 76ers played poorly on the offensive end due to Harden's absence, scoring only 82 points, a season low. Embiid was also taken care of by the Heat today, and he was wrapped up at every turn, so Embiid played very badly, playing 36 minutes in the whole game, shooting only 4 of 15, including 6 of 0 three-pointers, 14 of 14 free throws, 22 points, 15 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. Had it not been for a good performance on the free throw line, Embiid would not have scored 20+ today.
In addition to Embiid, the 76ers only had Two People, Maxie and Harris, who scored in double figures, and Maxie played 35 minutes, 7-of-14, with 17 points and two rebounds. Harris played 37 minutes, 6-of-15 and had 16 points, 8 rebounds and 2 assists.
In the whole game, the 76ers made a total of 41 shots outside the three-point line, hitting only 7 shots, shooting only 17.1%. George Niang had 1 of 8 three-pointers, Embiid 6-of-0 and Colkmaz 4-of-0.
On the Heat side, Lowry also missed today's game, Hiro played 34 minutes, 9 of 16, including 1 of 3 from three-point range and 2 of 2 from the free throw line, with 21 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists. In the last 6 games, Hiro can average 25 points per game, helping the team achieve a record of 5 wins and 1 loss.
Butler played 33 minutes today, shooting 6-of-15, including 1-of-2 from three-point range and 8-of-11 from the free throw line, with 21 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals.