Tyrese Maxey scored 27 points to guide the Philadelphia 76ers to a 123-112 victory over the visiting Toronto Raptors on Thursday.
Joel Embiid added 20 points for the Sixers, while Jaylen Brown had 18 points and VJ Edgecombe notched 15 while matching Maxey with eight assists. LeBron James (back) missed the game, creating additional opportunities for reserves Anfernee Simons (17 points) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (11).
RJ Barrett paced Toronto with 31 points on 13-of-20 shooting to go with 14 rebounds and five assists. Immanuel Quickley pitched in with 26 points and Collin Murray-Boyles had 14 points and five blocks for the Raptors, who continued to play without Kawhi Leonard (knee) and Scottie Barnes (groin).
After a first half that ended with the teams tied at 60-60, the Sixers shot 57.9% in the third quarter while knocking down four 3-pointers, including two by Simons. The Raptors shot it nicely in the third as well (55%), but they committed seven turnovers in the session while getting outscored 36-27.
The key sequence came when Philadelphia unleashed an 11-0 run late in the period. Maxey scored four points in that stretch and also found Brown for an alley-oop, while Simons accounted for the rest of the points with a 3-pointer and an assist to Jabari Walker.
Walker’s 3-pointer and Simons’ lay-in increased the Sixers’ lead to 101-87 early in the fourth.
Jamison Battle got Toronto within 111-105 with a 3-pointer with 4:43 left before Simons canned a triple on the other end. Caldwell-Pope’s 3-pointer at the shot-clock buzzer made it 121-108 with about two minutes to go.
Toronto knocked down five 3-pointers in the first quarter en route to a 33-24 lead after 12 minutes. The Raptors led by 17 with under two minutes left in the period before the Sixers clawed back into it with a quick 8-0 burst.
Philadelphia’s momentum continued into the second quarter, as the hosts scored the first seven points to get within two. Shortly thereafter, Edgecombe’s dunk put the Sixers on top 35-34.
