The Philadelphia 76ers closed out the 2022 calendar year with a rather easy 115-96 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder despite missing three key pieces. Tyrese Maxey, James Harden, and PJ Tucker were all missing in this one as they all nursed a variety of injuries they have been dealing with.
The Sixers handled this one with professionalism as they led by as many as 33, got production up and down the roster, and they got a triple-double from Joel Embiid on a night where he seemed off. The big fella only had 16 points on 6-for-17 shooting, but had 13 rebounds and 10 assists to go along with four blocks in the win.
Tobias Harris led Philadelphia with 23 points, 16 coming in the first half on 7-for-7 shooting, Shake Milton had 18 points and five assists, De’Anthony Melton added 17 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals, and Matisse Thybulle had nine points.
NBA Twitter gave its best reactions to the Sixers getting the job done on the road:
After a four-game stretch in which Joel Embiid scored 41.0 points per game on 57.5 percent shooting, he finally had a difficult scoring night, posting 16 points on 6-17 shooting. So, he decided to grab 13 rebounds and dish out 10 assists for his first triple-double of the season.
— Adam Aaronson (@SixersAdam) January 1, 2023
Joel Embiid has passed Andre Iguodala for ninth on the all-time Sixers scoring list.
— Noah Levick (@NoahLevick) January 1, 2023
Tobias Harris comes off a screen to drill a 3 from Embiid. Joel gets a triple double and then takes a foul to get out of the blowout.
— DaveEarly (@DavidEarly) January 1, 2023
Joel Embiid checks out with his triple double: 16 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists. And boy, was he chasing it at the end of the game.
Sixers have been in cruise control all night in OKC.
— Rich Hofmann (@rich_hofmann) January 1, 2023
The Sixers finish 2022 with a 115-96 victory over the Thunder in a game that was essentially over after the first 4 minutes.
They finish the road trip 2-2, and are 21-14 overall. They have a point differential of +3.7, the third best mark in the East and 5th best in the NBA.
— Austin Krell (@NBAKrell) January 1, 2023
Philly holds a 69-43 lead at the half with Tobias Harris leading the way with 16 points on a perfect 7/7 shooting. Shake Milton has 13 and 4 and…
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