The Philadelphia 76ers got their second straight win with a 100-89 victory over the Chicago Bulls Friday night. It’s a win that will be remembered as “the Furkan Korkmaz game.”
Throughout the first half, there was concern that the Sixers may be on their way to a disappointing home loss. The team continued to struggle from beyond the arc, and the Bulls were getting to the rim at will. As a result, Chicago took a three-point lead after the first quarter and maintained a one-point lead into the break.
That changed in the third quarter as the Sixers broke out, led by Korkmaz, posting 35 points in the frame and turning the one-point deficit into a 10-point lead. They were able to maintain the advantage throughout the fourth and cruise to an 11-point win.
It was all sparked by a career night from Korkmaz. He came off the bench for a career-high 24 points and a career-high six 3-pointers. Korkmaz added four rebounds and a block, knocking down 8-of-11 from the floor and 6-of-9 from 3. It wasn’t all just 3’s for Korkmaz either. He had an impressive drive to the basket that he finished with an emphatic dunk and knocked down a pretty floater. He also took a charge on Zach LaVine. Just how good was Korkmaz? Consider that he had two 3-pointers taken away, one because the Sixers hilariously had six players on the court and one on a questionable illegal screen call on Al Horford. Also consider that the rest of the Sixers were 3-of-20 from 3.
Korkmaz’s impact can’t be overstated, but he wasn’t alone. Al Horford had a very good game with 20 points, six assists, and five rebounds. Ben Simmons had 20 points as well, adding 11 rebounds and seven assists. Mattise Thybulle chipped in seven points, four rebounds, three blocks, two assists, and two steals.
The Sixers shot 58.4 percent on 2-point attempts and assisted on 30 of their 40 made shots. They only committed 11 turnovers and only allowed 42 second-half points. Philadelphia was also +7 on the glass and piled up nine steals and seven blocks.
It maybe wasn’t the dominant performance you might expect against a team that entered the game with a 15-27 record, but there was a lot to like about the showing. The Sixers improved to 27-16 on the season and 20-2 at home with the victory.
They’ll look to keep things going, and try to find a remedy for their road woes, on Saturday when they travel to Madison Square Garden to take on the Knicks.