The high-tension games are increasing at the end of the regular season, and the Wells Fargo Center was the scene of a hell of a duel between Philadelphia and Chicago, from which the Bulls emerged victorious after two overtimes.
The Sixers attacked the game with determination, the impact of Joel Embiid being enhanced by the outside address of the House-Harris-Melton trio (22-17). While James Harden offered his team the biggest gap of the match in favor of his team by a floater (27-19), Chicago then changed the face of the match thanks to a 17-2! The Bulls thus took control of the match with a simple recipe based on a big defense and speed of execution on transition. The series was thus concluded by Ayo Dosunmu on the counterattack to bring the score to 36-29 in favor of “Windy City”.
The three dunks of Tobias Harris to try to restart the machine were not enough, Chicago passing the warm rest, at +4 (40-44). Philly therefore relied on Joel Embiid to rock Chicago. But again, despite the pivot’s 18 points in the third quarter, the Bulls managed to stay the course, led by the Beverley-LaVine-Vucevic trio (68-69).
The 2+1 of Zach LaVine and Derrick Jones Jr put Chicago in a strong position from the first minutes of the fourth quarter (72-77). But the locals immediately rectified the situation with two distant missiles signed De’Anthony Melton. The back gave a layer on a “catch-and-shoot” in transition which could have dampened the morale of the Bulls at the start of the “money-time” (87-84). Shaken, Chicago held on, relying on Nikola Vucevic twice (87-89). Joel Embiid then Tyrese Maxey managed to equalize twice, and the two had the match point to give the victory to the Sixers at the buzzer, in vain (91-91).
Under great pressure, that of a boiling Wells Fargo Center in particular, Chicago relied on its triplet DeRozan-LaVine-Vucevic to stay in the game. At 99-99, a loose ball from James Harden this time offered the winning shot to Chicago, DeMar DeRozan in this case, whose attempt did not find the target, sending the two teams towards a second “overtime”. !
The task was complicated for Philly when Joel Embiid was ejected following his sixth personal foul, on a light contact on Zach LaVine. Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris, with a baseline shot, then took over to move to +4 (105-101). DeMar DeRozan answered them immediately, then, as the locals’ attack began to stagnate, it was Zach LaVine and Coby White who finished the job from the free throw line for a short but precious success gleaned by Chicago (105 -109).
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
Birthday day. It was 40 years ago, the Sixers won their last NBA title, guided by Julius Erving. 40 years later, the NBA champion players in 1983 were honored on the sidelines of this meeting. Even the Larry O’Brien trophy made the trip! Julius Erving for his part challenged his successors to in turn seek the Holy Grail this year, assuring that the wait had lasted long enough…
The crazy series of Joel Embiid. The leader of the Sixers chained his 10 tonighte straight game at 30 points or more. This is the first time that a pivot has achieved such a feat since Shaquille O’Neal in 2001! Unfortunately for Embiid, this evening will remain marked by his expulsion which cost the match to his team.
TOPS/FLOPS
✅ The DeRozan-Lavine-Vucevic trio. The three players form the barometer of the Bulls. When they play at this level, Chicago immediately becomes a different team. This night, we will remember the calm and the application with which the three operated to allow Chicago to resist and stay in the game until the end without almost ever panicking.
✅ Joel Embiid He held his role as leader until his expulsion for six fouls. We soon saw how disorganized and uninspired Philly was in attack when he left the field.
✅ De’Anthony Melton. He too was precious this night, notably allowing his family to believe in it again after a breathtaking passage in the last act. Four interceptions as a bonus to validate his performance.
⛔ James Harden. 12 assists, 7 rebounds but also a lot of ball waste in hand, with 5 lost balls and a sad 2/14 shooting. You would think he would take control when Joel Embiid left. As a result, he ate a huge block from Derrick Jones Jr in his attempt to equalize 14 seconds from the end.
THE FOLLOWING
Philadelphia (48-23) And Chicago (34-37) : will meet this Wednesday on the floor of the Bulls (01:00).
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