Embiid leads way as Sixers overtake Raptors
Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers saves a loose ball during the second quarter against the Toronto Raptors at Wells Fargo Center on December 29, 2020 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images/AFP
Joel Embiid scored 29 points and grabbed 16 rebounds to lift the host Philadelphia 76ers past the Toronto Raptors 100-93 on Tuesday.
Philadelphia outscored Toronto 18-6 in the final 5 1/2 minutes to pull out the win.
Embiid made 14 of 16 free throws and overcame a brief injury scare in the third quarter.
Tobias Harris added 26 points and 11 rebounds, Seth Curry contributed 17 points and Ben Simmons had 11 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists for the Sixers, who improved to 3-1.
Kyle Lowry led the Raptors with 24 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. Pascal Siakam added 20 points before fouling out.
OG Anunoby also had 20 for the Raptors, who fell to 0-3 for the first time since 2005-06.
The Sixers missed their final nine shots of the first quarter and trailed 28-17.
Toronto led 41-32 with 4:30 left in the second despite more poor shooting from Philadelphia, which missed another eight in a row.
The Raptors closed the first half with an 8-0 run — consecutive 3-pointers by Lowry and Siakam and a layup by Fred VanVleet for a 56-48 lead heading into the locker room.
Embiid hit all 11 of his free throws and kept the Sixers close with 18 points in the half. But the Sixers trailed largely because they missed 14 of 18 treys.
When Anunoby dropped in a 3-pointer from the baseline, the Raptors pulled ahead 68-56 with 8:43 remaining in the third.
The Sixers received a scare when Embiid limped to the locker room with 8:02 left in the third with an apparent right leg injury. But Embiid returned to the game 4:01 later.
Embiid’s presence sparked the Sixers, who tied the game at 76 at the end of the third thanks to a 13-0 run.
After Siakam hit a jumper with 6:55 to go in the game, the Raptors moved ahead 87-82.
Philadelphia’s Danny Green made a trey and Harris added a short jumper to equalize at 87.
Embiid connected on a pair of free throws with 2:27 left and the Sixers took a 93-89 lead.
The Raptors got within 93-91 before Curry responded with a 3-pointer for a five-point advantage with 1:05 left.
