The Philadelphia 76ers have been riding the coattails of Joel Embiid as they continue to move forward with their 2021-22 season. The big fella has been having a terrific season in terms of being their leader and he did it again in Monday’s win over the Houston Rockets at home.
Embiid went off for 31 points on 12-for-20 shooting, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists for his third career triple-double. It was clear that the Rockets were not going to have an answer for him all night long and Embiid took advantage of his mismatches.
It was needed as well as the Sixers got off to a slow start in this one besides the big fella and he was going to be needed all night long in order to pick up a win.
“In the first half, I kept posting up,” said Embiid. “We didn’t hit our first couple shots so I decided to kind of change my approach because I was really not aggressive enough. Whether it’s getting my shot. I started taking advantage of transition a little bit more because they were doubling.”
It was a night where the Sixers once again needed Embiid to be great. This has been something that has been regular for him recently, but it was clear that he was not going to let the Sixers walk away with a loss.
“He was not going to let us lose that game,” said acting head coach Dan Burke. “From the get-go, he was good. It was good spirit and a lot of good energy in that locker room. I was a little nervous. We played him the whole quarter as a 5, but when you’re rolling like that, you just got to go with it and hope everyone just—it’s contagious when everyone else can get a lift.”
Embiid did play the entire first quarter as he had 13 points, five rebounds, and four assists in the opening quarter, but the Sixers only led by four after one. It was after that when the big fella turned it up another notch against a Rockets team that has been struggling this season and they were down two of their top players due to suspension.
“I’m not surprised by anything Joel does on the floor because he really took a huge step,” said Furkan Korkmaz. “He plays on a different level. I don’t even have to describe it, how to explain this game, because he can do everything right now. It’s not just post-ups, it’s not just face-ups. He had a really good package.”
Despite the triple-double and a fourth consecutive win, Embiid was not exactly satisfied with his performance. He did have six turnovers that bothered him a bit.
“I thought I was fine,” he said. “I turned the ball over too much. The whole season, that’s been one of the points of emphasis going into the season. I’ve been doing a great job, just protecting the ball, but I thought tonight that was also a result of me kind of being passive instead of being aggressive trying to score. I had a couple of offensive fouls here and there, but I thought tonight, I was fine. I just really turned the ball over too much.”
The Sixers will now hit the road to take on the Orlando Magic on Wednesday.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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