Observations after Sixers make last-ditch push, escape with win over Jazz

Observations after Sixers make last-ditch push, escape with win over Jazz  originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Sixers raised their game just before the clock struck midnight and pulled out a win Wednesday night over the lowly Jazz.

They ultimately earned a 106-102 victory at Xfinity Mobile Arena. 

Tyrese Maxey tallied 25 points and six assists for the Sixers, who improved to 34-28. Jabari Walker had 22 points and 10 rebounds.

Keyonte George scored 30 points for the 18-44 Jazz.

The Sixers were without Joel Embiid (right oblique strain), Paul George (suspension), Kelly Oubre Jr. (illness) and VJ Edgecombe (lumbar contusion).

Utah’s absences included Lauri Markkanen, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Jusuf Nurkic. 

The Sixers will face the Hawks on Saturday night in Atlanta. Here are observations on their win against the Jazz:

Early defensive improvements 

Trendon Watford started for the sixth time this season. Adem Bona opened at center over Andre Drummond, who played just five low-quality minutes Tuesday in the Sixers’ 40-point loss to the Spurs.

The bar was extraordinarily low, but the Sixers began the night with better defensive juice and focus than they had against San Antonio.

The Sixers limited George’s early chances to have clean downhill drives and forced Utah to use much of the shot clock in search of something decent in the half court. The Jazz started 4 for 18 from the field and 1 for 8 from three-point range. 

Maxey turned one Jazz turnover into three quick points when he picked off Ace Bailey’s pass in the backcourt and then drilled a deep jumper. The Sixers built a 14-point lead late in the first quarter. 

Walker’s stellar back-to-back

The team had close to an all-hands-on-deck approach. Head coach Nick Nurse used an 11-man rotation. 

Walker was the best of the bench bunch. After his garbage-time exploits against the Spurs (20 points, six rebounds in the second half), Walker stayed hot against Utah. He’d joked Tuesday that he wished he didn’t have to leave the arena and sleep. 

Walker drained four long-distance jumpers and scored 15 points in his first seven minutes on the floor. His fourth three-point make rattled around the rim before getting a friendly spin through the hole. 

While the 23-year-old’s calling cards have been rebounding, physicality and energy off the bench, Nurse has noted that Walker’s shot well behind closed doors. Perhaps he’s due for a strong late-season patch beyond the arc.

Unlike Walker, Kyle Lowry was not fresh off a game the night prior.

The 39-year-old guard played Wednesday for the first time since Feb. 9 and logged nine minutes. Nurse surprisingly subbed Lowry in alongside Maxey for a short fourth-quarter stint.

Last-ditch push does the job

As has been the case many times this year, the Sixers came out of the locker room for the second half a much worse team.

Utah surged in front with a 10-0 run and Nurse burned a timeout after a couple of minutes. The Sixers have gone far past the point of such scenes feeling like déjà vu.

The Jazz took a four-point edge when George cut backdoor on Grimes and converted an and-one layup. The Sixers trailed by as many as eight points in yet another losing third quarter, though they at least righted the ship near the end of the period and entered the fourth with a one-point deficit.

Two-way contract player Tyrese Martin brushed off a few mistakes in the first half and gave the Sixers a solid stretch in the second, including two long-range jumpers early in the fourth quarter.

However, the Sixers’ defense struggled to find consistent success.

Even with all the context in mind — missing four valuable defensive players on the second night of a back-to-back — they made a number of inexcusable miscues. With Lowry on the floor and the Sixers playing zone, George canned a wide-open three to put the Jazz up 100-94.

The Sixers made a desperate push to try to save the game.

Bona’s put-back slam evened the contest at 100-all. George air balled a three late in the clock, but Maxey then committed a turnover in his efforts to drive through traffic and Isaiah Collier profited with a fast-break layup.

Quentin Grimes followed with four straight clutch points — first a driving layup, then a pair of free throws with 16.4 seconds left — and Kyle Filipowski missed a go-ahead three-point attempt.

Walker snagged the defensive rebound and sealed the Sixers’ nervy win at the foul line.