PHILADELPHIA–The Philadelphia 76ers played host to the Houston Rockets on Monday looking to keep things moving in the right direction. They had won two games in a row entering the contest and they had an inferior opponent in front of them.
The Sixers took care of business and knocked off the Rockets 123-104 and they led by as many as 26 in a relatively easy win.
James Harden had 28 points and 10 assists and Joel Embiid had 23 points, six rebounds, and four assists, but Tyrese Maxey stole the show with 26 points on 10-for-16 shooting with six assists and five rebounds off the bench.
“Once you hit shots, and make 3s, it kind of opens up everything,” Maxey said after the win. “They had to fly out to you, you can drive, put the ball back on the floor, get the paint, create for yourself, create for others.”
Coach Doc Rivers was happy with what Maxey brought on the offensive end, but he also singled out his defensive ability. The Sixers really needed his ball pressure in the backcourt on guys like Jalen Green and Jae’Sean Tate in order to succeed.
“I thought he was great,” said Rivers. “Just what he does for us. Changes the pace of the game when he comes in, he was good. In the last four games, three or four games, his defense—just his ball pressure. He’s really finding what he can do and where he can help us on defense. It’s been good for us.”
Maxey and the Sixers will look to keep things going in the right direction when they play host to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday in the final game before the All-Star break.
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