3 things to know: Warriors struggle to close after fiery comeback bid vs. 76ers, 108-98

After erasing a 24 point lead, the Warriors couldn’t finish a comeback bid against the Sixers in the fourth quarter. Here are three things to know from Golden State’s 108-98 loss to Philadelphia.

Despite a late push, the Golden State Warriors couldn’t complete a comeback bid against the Philadelphia 76ers at Chase Center, dropping the contest. Without Steph Curry, the Warriors struggled to get moving offensively as the Eastern Conference-leading Sixers jumped out to a commanding lead.

Yet, when the Warriors wiped away Philadelphia’s lead with a gritty comeback, Steve Kerr’s rotation lacked a needed-closer in the fourth quarter. After eliminating a 24 point Philadelphia lead, the Warriors carried a five-point advantage heading into the final 12 minutes of the contest.

Via @warriors on Twitter:

Following Golden State’s lead by Kelly Oubre Jr., Damion Lee and Jordan Poole, the Sixers turned it back on in the fourth quarter. Tobias Harris sparked Philadelphia’s late run, scoring nine of his game-high 25 points in the fourth quarter. The Sixers outscored the Warriors 28-13 in the fourth quarter to shut the door on a potential comeback, closing the contest 108-98 at Chase Center.

Along with his 25 points, Harris led the Sixers with a double-double effort, recording 13 boards and four assists in 36 minutes. Timothy Bradley added another double-double for the 76ers, tallying 18 points on a perfect 8-of-8 from the field with 11 rebounds, two steals and two blocks in 33 minutes.

After a pair of losses, the Warriors will travel to California’s state capital for a battle with the Sacramento Kings on Thursday at 7 p.m. PT.

[mm-video type=video id=01f1gggsk6zk5ax1ww playlist_id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01eqbvq570kgj8vfs7 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01f1gggsk6zk5ax1ww/01f1gggsk6zk5ax1ww-c28a3569cb2f1e982d8b403c55bdcb4f.jpg]

Ugly start

Without Curry in the starting lineup, the Sixers opened the contest with a knockout punch, outscoring the Warriors by 18 points in the first 12 minutes. Ben Simmons notched 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting to lead Philadelphia.

While six different members of the 76ers scored four or more points, the Warriors struggled to find the bottom of the net. Golden State shot 7-of-21 from the field and 0-of-6 from beyond the arc in the first quarter. Jordan Poole paced the Warriors with only four points on 1-of-4 shooting from the field in the opening quarter.

Kelly Oubre Jr.

With trade rumors swirling, Oubre Jr. helped carry the Warriors without Curry against the 76ers. The Kansas product registered a team-high 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field with 10 boards, three assists and a block in 35 minutes for Golden State.

James Wiseman

After missing three games in the NBA’s health and safety protocol, James Wiseman made his return to the Warriors rotation. Instead of coming off the bench, Kerr slid the second-overall pick from the 2020 draft back into the starting lineup.

In his first appearance in the starting lineup since Jan., the rookie filed a double-figure scoring effort with 11 points on 5-of-13 shooting from the floor. Wiseman added four boards, two assists and a block in 26 minutes against the Sixers.

[lawrence-related id=35732,35715]

[listicle id=35169]