The last time the Philadelphia 76ers were involved in a Game 7 in the Eastern Conference semifinals, it involved them getting their hearts broken by Kawhi Leonard and the Toronto Raptors at the buzzer in 2019.
That was on the road in Canada. The upcoming Game 7 with the Atlanta Hawks will be at the Wells Fargo Center.
Sunday offers a new opportunity for the Sixers to get to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2001. Their stars, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, have an opportunity to get the job done at home. They were oh so close to getting the job done in Toronto, but it’s hard to go on the road and win a Game 7.
Sunday offers a chance of redemption.
“I’m excited,” said Embiid after the Game 6 win on Friday. “This time, it’s at home. You can back that up. I believe that if we had home court, it would have been easier to win. That why we work so hard in the regular season to get home-court advantage. Playing in front of our fans.”
The Sixers have been terrific at home, sporting a 29-7 home record during the regular season, and they feed off the energy of the passionate Philadelphia fan base.
“I’m looking forward to it,” said Simmons. “I look forward to every game so this is gonna be special because we’re at home. Obviously, we’re gonna have our fans there and their energy on top so it’s gonna be great. I’m looking forward to it.”
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Granted, the Sixers have lost two games at home in this series with the Hawks including blowing a 26-point lead at home in Game 5, but they bounced back and picked up the road win on Friday. They now have to carry the momentum with them back to Philadelphia on Sunday.
“I know we blew that lead last game,” said Embiid. “That’s something we should have never done, but tonight (Friday) we were just kept telling each other, 48 minutes. You got to be focused for 48 minutes and that’s what we have to do. We’ll be fine.”
The Sixers are the No. 1 seed in the East for a reason after an impressive season. They came away with a win on the road Friday to keep the season alive. It was an impressive win considering the mental toll of blowing two huge leads in consecutive games, and it shows how far they have come in their resiliency a bit.
“We’re a confident team,” said Simmons. “We know we can beat this team and we got to go out and do it. I don’t think anybody has to be thinking we’re shocked that we’re winning or won that game. That’s what we’re supposed to do, and everybody’s got to do the job and play the full 48.”
The stars will have their chance at a bit of redemption on Sunday in South Philadelphia.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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