(Philadelphia) Pascal Siakam had 26 points, 10 rebounds and Precious Achiuwa added 21 points to lead the Toronto Raptors to a big 93-88 win over 76ers in Philadelphia on Sunday evening.
Posted at 12:06 a.m.
Quebec’s Chris Boucher also had an excellent game with 12 points and 14 rebounds to help the Raptors claim their sixth straight road victory.
The Raptors were particularly dominant under the basket collecting 20 offensive rebounds and a total of 56 against only 40 for the Sixers.
James Harden missed two free throws for the Raptors at 87-86, then missed a stride shot with 59 seconds on the clock and the score was 89-86. The Sixers had another chance to win with 37.3 seconds remaining when Joel Embiid made a costly turnover.
For the Raptors, Scottie Barnes made the end of the game more agonizing than necessary by missing two free throws with 7.1 seconds left and a 90-88 lead.
But again, Harden was unable to put the ball in the basket on a stride shot. Worse, he committed an offensive foul deemed abusive on the sequence by sending his elbow to Boucher’s face. This foul ended the Sixers’ hopes of a comeback.
In the loss, Embiid had 21 points and 13 rebounds. He made just six of his 20 shots and missed all three of his shots from the three-point line. Tyrese Maxey scored 19 points and Harden 17.
The history of the game will have been a series of botched leads by the Sixers.
The Raptors outscored the second quarter 30-17 to erase a 16-point deficit and take a 57-54 halftime lead. The scenario repeated itself in the fourth quarter when the hosts held a 74-69 lead that turned into a loss.
This win is hugely important for the Raptors as the season draws to a close. The Torontonians are in the thick of the fight for sixth place in the playoffs. Before the game, they were one game behind the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Sixth place gives direct access to the playoffs, which avoids the qualifying tournament which involves the teams ranked 7and at 10and.