After three straight losses and even more frustration, you could sense the Sixers were looking to take it out on their next opponent.
Despite a lackluster third quarter, they did just that in a 125-108 win over the Wizards Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center.
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The Sixers bullied their way through Washington’s zone and stepped up their defensive intensity for most of the game — outside of a 36-point performance from All-Star Bradley Beal.
The win improves them to 21-10 on the season and 15-2 at home. They travel to Detroit for a date with the Pistons Monday night (7 p.m., NBCSP+).
Here are observations from the win:
Busting the zone
NBA
Brett Brown was probably trying to figure out ways to beat the zone in his sleep after the Sixers sleepwalked against it in two straight losses. It was a little surprising to see the Wizards come out in man. Just four minutes into the game, head coach Scott Brooks switched to the zone.
The biggest differences Saturday over the last two games was the Sixers attacked the zone — playing inside out — and that Washington simply didn’t have the horses that the Heat and Mavericks have. The Sixers also did shoot the ball much better than they had over the last two, hitting 14 of 33 from three.
Josh Richardson, who was honest in his assessment of how poorly the Sixers handled the zone, was a big part of the reason they were able to break it. Richardson was aggressive, looking for his shot and punishing the Wizards in the midrange.
He had 21 points on 9 of 17 from the field.
Simmons setting the pace, Embiid staying aggressive
There was much scrutiny surrounding Ben Simmons and questions to how much the team’s inability to bust the zone was on their young point guard. Some fair points were made … and some outlandish ones as well. On Saturday, he attacked the cracks in Washington’s defense and was looking to score. He finished with 14 points, 11 assists, eight rebounds and four steals. He did committ six turnovers.
He also looked more engaged defensively than he had in the previous two games.
As for Embiid, he was likely licking his chops at this matchup. Washington’s frontcourt is beat up to the point where former Sixers draft bust Anzejs Pasecniks has been a part of their rotation. The Latvian big picked up four fouls in his first five minutes and Brooks was forced to use 6-foot-5 Admiral Schofield as a five. Embiid was efficient, going 8 of 15 for 21 points. He also added 13 rebounds and two blocks in under 30 minutes.
The Wizards aren’t very good and are shorthanded, but credit to Simmons and Embiid for going back to playing straight bully ball and taking care of business.
Not getting outworked
Beyond their inability to beat the zone, it just seemed like the Sixers were flat outworked over the last two games. They have the highest rebounding percentage in the NBA yet were outrebounded in each of the last two contests.
As the second quarter went on, the Sixers began to flex their muscle and win the advantage on the glass. That’s also when the team opened up their lead a bit and started to take the game over. They finished with a decisive 53-38 edge on the boards.
The overall team defense was significantly better as well — aside from the end of the second quarter and pretty much the entire third where Washington managed to make it a four-point game at one point.
Burke getting burn
As Brown has looked for answers offensively, he’s looked to veteran guard Trey Burke. Raul Neto has been getting the bulk of the backup point guard duties recently, but Burke saw time in the second half Friday and was ahead of Neto Saturday.
Burke did provide a spark (12 points, 5 of 6). He hit a difficult step back three on a broken possession and another off a ball screen in the first half.
Burke’s ability to be a “waterbug” and put pressure on defense with his ball handling is a useful skill. He also held up pretty well defensively, holding former Sixer Ish Smith scoreless on 0 of 7. Smith didn’t miss a shot in dropping 26 Friday in Toronto.
Eyes on a future Sixer?
If you recall the Sixers' loss in D.C. earlier this month, the name Davis Bertans should ring a bell. The Latvian forward shot the lights out, making 7 of 13 from three on his way to 25 points.
The Sixers did a much better job in this one of finding Bertans, holding him to 3 of 13 and 0 of 7 from three. You saw the good and bad to Bertans’ game. He’s a smart player, generally makes good decisions and runs the floor. He has some defensive deficiencies, but he possesses game-changing shooting when he’s on.
It’s hard to imagine the Sixers would see much zone with a player like Bertans on the floor.
Odd ejection
With under three minutes left in the fourth quarter, guard Isaiah Thomas was ejected for "going into the stands." It was unknown at the time what caused that reaction from Thomas.
Apparently it all started over free a Frosty (see story).
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