PHILADELPHIA — Pascal Siakam gave a pregame pep discuss to keep the Raptors calm in a hostile Philly surroundings the place they now misplaced twice and fell into a playoff gap.
The information was easy: “Listen to our voices.”
How do they like the seem of this? The resilient Raptors are headed residence, continue to with a likelihood to pull off a collection comeback that’s under no circumstances occurred in the NBA.
Siakam experienced 23 points and 10 rebounds, Treasured Achiuwa scored 17 and the Toronto Raptors compelled a return property for Activity 6 in their Eastern Meeting 1st-round collection in opposition to Philadelphia, beating the 76ers 103-88 on Monday night.
“We generally sort of figure it out,” Siakam said.
Yo, Canada! The moment holding a 3- collection lead, the 76ers are headed back north.
No staff has at any time blown a 3- benefit and missing a playoff series.
The Raptors have won two straight in the series and jumped all about injured Sixers centre Joel Embiid and ineffective James Harden to make Thursday night’s video game a requirement.
FanDuel Sportsbook has the Sixers favored by 1 1/2 points for Recreation 6.
Embiid had 20 details and 11 rebounds taking part in with a thumb damage. Harden scored 15 points on 4-of-11 shooting.
“I was horrible defensively,” Embiid stated. “There’s seriously no clarification. I’ve just received to participate in with a lot more vitality, shift my feet improved. I’ve just obtained to be much better.”
Rapper and famed 76ers enthusiast Meek Mill pulled his hood more than his head and walked off from his courtside seat late in the game and the household group down 14.
Sixers mentor Doc Rivers is dragging the fat of ignominious NBA background with him through customs. Rivers, who led Boston to the 2008 championship, is the only coach in NBA historical past to blow three 3-1 collection qualified prospects. The Magic dropped to Detroit in the 2003 Japanese Convention initial spherical the 2015 Clippers blew the sequence to Houston in the Western Convention semifinals and in 2020, the Clippers lost to Denver in the West semifinals.
The up coming year, Rivers was in Philly — and the Sixers misplaced 3 online games at household as the No. 1 seed and were being eliminated in the next round.
The nerves in Philly are quickly as limited as the rims.
“We under no circumstances introduced the battle to them at the commencing of the recreation, really,” 76ers ahead Tobias Harris stated.
The Sixers had a depressing first fifty percent. They concluded with 10 turnovers and shot 35% from the floor. Philly’s last bucket in the very first quarter was one for the blooper reel: Matisse Thybulle’s skipped shot bounced off the rim and was unintentionally tipped in by Achiuwa.
Whoops.
Possibly it sparked one thing for the Raptors. They opened the 2nd quarter on a 12- operate to acquire handle all although the Sixers missed their to start with nine photographs. The Sixers did not rating right up until 6:51 was still left in the 50 percent. Scottie Barnes scored eight points in the quarter and the Raptors took a 54-41 guide at the split.
“They have been the more durable staff all night, they have been additional bodily all night time,” Rivers reported. “I really do not think it was the 2nd quarter. I imagined it was all through the activity.”
The 76ers ended up booed off the court docket, their participate in a bleak reminder of recent postseason flameouts.
“We’ve generated seriously superior pictures most of the sequence,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse reported prior to the activity. “We haven’t shot really well still. I informed the men these days, today would be a excellent day to go forward and begin building some of those people open photographs.”
The Raptors listened, hovering close to 50% for most of the recreation. They also controlled the boards and scored 20 details off 16 turnovers.
Harden could have used the shooting tip.
Harden performed the identical night time the All-Star he was traded for, Ben Simmons, was inactive for Brooklyn. Harden was barely additional seen and missed 6 of 8 pictures by means of a few quarters, scoring 9 points.
Embiid continued to participate in with a ligament tear in his ideal thumb. He appeared gassed at occasions in the third quarter as the Raptors held attacking the MVP finalist for hard buckets, notably Achiuwa’s driving layup that created it 73-60.
Embiid had his own rallying cry for the 76ers: Get back to the form of perform that gained them the 3- guide.
“It’s the similar recipe. Do not convert the ball about. Offensive rebound. We’ve unquestionably got to be improved defensively,” he mentioned. “There’s a purpose we received 3 game titles in a row.”
OG Anunoby and Gary Trent Jr. just about every scored 16 points for the Raptors.
“Not exactly the way we would draw it up, but we’re joyful to still be actively playing,” Nurse claimed.
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