Summer League: Markelle Fultz shows glimpses, but Sixers fall in opener

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SALT LAKE CITY – Markelle Fultz made an impressive debut for the Sixers on the opening day of the Utah Jazz Summer League. His efforts weren't quite enough to help Philadelphia hang on for a victory.

Boston rallied to edge the Sixers 89-88 after Jayson Tatum drained a game-winning jumper with 5.7 seconds left. Philadelphia had a shot at a game winner as well when Fultz went to the rim for a reverse layup with 1.9 seconds remaining, but Jaylen Brown blocked Fultz at the rim and the Celtics survived.

Fultz led the Sixers with 17 points. The Sixers shot 32-of-79 (40.5 percent) from the field while allowing the Celtics to connect on 34-of-72 field goal attempts – a 47.2 percent clip.

Turning point
The Sixers took control behind a 25-3 run over a 6 ½ minute stretch during the third quarter. Philadelphia went ahead when Fultz fed Isaiah Miles for a three-pointer. Jonah Bolden finished off the lengthy spurt when he drilled another three-pointer to give the Sixers a 71-56 lead with 2:03 remaining in the quarter.

Tatum came to the rescue for the Celtics in the fourth quarter. He scored 21 points and rallied Boston from an 83-77 deficit over the final six minutes with several critical baskets. The biggest one was his jumper with 5.7 seconds left that put the Celtics ahead for good.

Fultz watch
For four quarters, Fultz made the sort of plays you would expect the No. 1 overall draft pick to make. He knocked down all sorts of timely baskets. Fultz also showed some chops on the defensive end.

The rookie guard from Washington finished with 17 points on 6-of-16 shooting. Fultz also totaled three blocks and a steal on defense.

Team leaders
Fultz got plenty of help from his teammates over four quarters. Second-year forward Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot chipped in 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Alex Poythress added 11 points and eight rebounds. Off the bench, Aaron Harrison was the top scorer with 12 points.

Boston enjoyed strong outings from Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Tatum finished with 21 points, seven rebounds and five steals. Brown had a game-high 29 points and 13 rebounds.

Key stat
The Sixers had a penchant for disrupting Boston at the rim. Philadelphia finished with 11 blocked shots. Jonah Bolden finished with a team-high four blocked shots. Four different players had two or more blocks for the Sixers.

Top Sixers plays
Aaron Harrison played a critical role in rallying the Sixers from a 10-point second quarter deficit with a pair of baskets. His best one came out of a fun sequence where he picked Abdel Nader's pocket, flipped the ball to Larry Drew II and then threw down a dunk off an outlet pass from Drew. The basket cut Boston's lead to 39-35 with 2:48 left before halftime.

Markelle Fultz exhibited great timing in coming up with several key blocks. The best one occured during Philadelphia's big third quarter run. Kadeem Allen drove in for a layup with the Celtics trailing 56-53 midway through the quarter. Fultz met him at the rim and swatted the shot attempt against the glass with force.

What's next?
The Sixers continue summer league play against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday. Tipoff is at 9 pm ET.

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