Rewind vs. Indiana Pacers - 1/13/20

half game behind Indiana in the Eastern Conference standings. The Pacers leap frog the seventy Sixers into fifth, improving to twenty five and fifteen, while the seventy Sixers are now twenty five and sixteen. They were swept on this two game road trip, which started Saturday in Dallas, and the Sixers now have dropped six of their last eight games and nine of their past thirteen, which essentially accounts for the last three and a half four weeks for the Sixers.

On the road, they struggled with their perimeter shot once again. They were just six of thirty three for the game. In the second half, they were three for seventeen. Ben Simmons got off to a terrific start, and he was able to crank out twenty points in Tonight's opening half. He finished with a game high twenty four, but you do the math. He was kept in check in the second half. Josh Richardson, who earlier in the day earned his first ever Conference Player of the Week award, had

an awesome fourth quarter. He scored seventeen of his twenty three points, including the seventy sixers final thirteen points of the game. But it was not enough tonight, as the Pacers kept the seventy Sixers scoreless for the final two minutes of play, and they got the decisive six points from the free throw line. And that's one area where

you look at that final fourth quarter. Seventy Sixers turned the ball over way too much, seven turnovers in the fourth quarter, and Indiana got to the line twice as many times, albeit in the final minutes from the seventy sixers, and that was a pretty key disparity. Two areas that were key disparities in the fourth quarter. Much like what we saw Saturday at Dallas. The Sixers enjoyed a really

promising start of the game. They played great defense, I thought, more consistent defense tonight probably good enough defense to win the game, but Indie just clamped down too much for the Sixers late. But again, the second half the decisive turning point against the seventy Sixers. They gave up sixty eight second half points to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday, and tonight they surrendered sixty one points to the Indiana Pacers in the second half at Baker's Life Field House.

So a tough one for the seventy Sixers. They drop into sixth place in the East. The Pacers move a half a game in front of the seventy Sixers. They've now won two out of the three matchups on the year. The Sixers will have an opportunity to try and hold Serve on their home floor again in March, but for now, the Sixers will head back home for two games against Brooklyn and Chicago later in the week. Looking to get

back on track. Tom McGinnis called this one in Indianapolis tonight, Tom, what aer did you see things go against the Sixers in the second half? Well, honestly that you did a great job of summarizing the game, and then plus the breakdown from from coach Brown, and you know there's just the driving in the in traffic, and the way that Indiana covered the Sixers down the stretch was just really impressive,

and that spelled the differences. The Sixers could not get open and get any good looks, and you know, again it's part of that is compounded by, you know, the difficulty in making open or not even open, but just making threes and making outside shots, and then it's it's glaring like the Sixers without Joel that really is just an obvious, you know, difference because even if he's not scoring down low, at least he's somebody they had a guard or the ball goes in there initially, but part

of the storyline coming into the game is now, this is the third game without Embeed with this hand injury after the surgery, and you're trying to define how this group will play without him, and Brett Brown looked at it as an opportunity, and you know, you saw something in terms of how you described and what I called with Ben Simmons getting in there and being so aggressive and attacking in the first half, but that wasn't there in the second half. He had only one field goal.

You mentioned four points. Two of those were free throws and so it's tough. I mean, they kind of bottled up Horford a little bit. As you mentioned that the Harris three was blocked by t. J. Warren, So you got to give them credit with their defense. And again they held the Sixers to ninety six points. That's thirteen fewer than their average. But certainly, as I said, these games define things, and you got if you're gonna say that, then okay, then this defines. And the Sixers are still searching.

They're they're in a tailspin right now, and they could have gotten out of it had they extuecuted down the stretch. They couldn't stop Rockden and they couldn't score themselves, and it spells defeat here in Indianapolis by the score of one on one to ninety five Packers Life Field half time.

The three point shooting thing is kind of a tricky thing to look at right now, because I want to say it was maybe before the game against OKAC last week when the seventy six Ers came off the road they were winless in four games, and Brett Brown before the game talked a lot about prioritizing trying to manufacture simply more three point opportunities let's just forget and makes for a moment, but more three point opportunities, and they didn't quite seem to do that against Okase and Boston.

They took thirty seven attempts against Dallas the other night, thirty three tonight, which is more than what they had averaged per game before Bretton made those comments. But it's there are different three point shooting team on the road than they are at home. Like just some of the shots aren't going down. It's it's bizarre, Yeah, I know, and like, and I made a comment and I stand by it. So at one point to six or they shot eighteen percent from three and four threes, really you

want more? I just I have to digress and disagree. Like I thought during the game, they're not They clearly didn't have the legs. I mean they weren't. The ball that was short. Almost all the attempts were short. Same thing for Indiana, that's not hard to figure out you're not getting the ball there. And for me, at least in a phase of the game, you know, like and these were a lot of them were open looks. You know,

drive the ball more, and they did. Right after that, they started getting some mid range shots, you know, so I know what the analytics say, but boy, just watching basketball and looking at the threes weren't going. And so I think you got to go to something else at that and try to work on something else and try to get something else going to the basket or you know, pick and pop where they're eighteen footers and it's just you know, when they're not going. And certainly on the road,

I don't know what the difference is. You know how the crowd plays into it in that area, but it's an area where the Sixers have struggled at times, and clearly this was one of those games. Well, and it goes back to the big picture point that you made. It should certainly clarify that Prett Brown made those comments about wanting to see more three pointers before Joel Ebad got hurt. While Joel Ebiad is now hurt, we're not

sure how long he's going to be out for. And while the Sixers were able to get some of their looks and converted late in the game against the Boston Celtics on Thursday, I think I don't know how you feel this is going to be an ongoing thing for the immediate future. With that and beat is just seeing like how they're going to figure this out with the options they have currently on the floor when games tighten up late against good teams. Yeah right, no, that's not

going away. And let me be clear, And this sounds like I'm talking about both sides of my mouth. So the sixes made six and like the three, you know what I've noticed over the years, and the sixes have not been traditionally over the last you know, well really, I don't know eight ten years, they've not been one of the top three point shooting teams. Certainly last year, in the last couple of years with Reddick, it changed

the dynamic a little bit. And when you're making them, it gets you back into games, and when you have a slight lead, it obviously pushes the leads where sometimes it's a two, three possession ball game. But I stand by what I said regarding you know, when you're not making them and then continuing to take them, I don't know, sometimes that seems a little foolhardy or just it seems like they're not it's not going to swing the balance when you're not making them, when you're missing them time

after time. But again, you have to find some type of recipe or way to attack without embed You're right, it's a wholly different thing. And Horford's a different type of player than Joel. The idea is to play faster, and I thought Simmons just he completely dominated with how he attacked. I believe he was eight of ten in the first half from the field, and yet he had a couple of close range shots down the stretch that he shot kind of as layups from five feet or so,

and those are difficult. Those are hard shots to me. You got to square the shoulders and shoot that like a jump shot, like a you know, right in there in close range. And there was just a whole number of things that went Indiana's ways. And you know, like I said to I, change your identity on the road. You've got to win these games. You got to play better down the stretch. It is more difficult, no doubt, away from Philadelphia. And it's like the Sixers are two

different teams. Six straight losses here, only seven wins on the road period, you know, and they've been dominant at home with what eighteen victories, and you know, no matter what happens, and right now, the Sixers are outside the top four, and who's to say how it ends up in the next half of the season. Hopefully they'll get a home court advantage in the first round. But at some point you have to win on the road in

the playoffs anyway, I mean more than likely. And so you've got and you can't just click your heels, snap your fingers and say, wala will be a playoff, will be a tough road team on the You have to form the habits, know with confidence that you can close out games on the road. Execute down the stretch. That's what playoffs. Just how tight we saw it here down

the stretch, that's what the playoffs are like. Every single you have to squeeze every little drop out of the wet tile, if you will, and milk it and try to get the offense. It's not free flown, it's not running racehorse, dunk the basketball ninety four feet. That's not how it goes in the guts of a hard, tough road playoff game, or any game on the road where

it's this close, that's just not how it works. Seventy six ers falling in the one ninety five even at this time, I'm talking about, where does some of the seventy six ers late games. Options come from you know, Josh Richardson has been putting up his hand as of late. He reached the twenty point mark for the fourth time in his last six games, and he was great in the fourth quarters, certainly put the seventy Sixers in a

position to steal this one tonight. He was terrific that one three he made with the shot clock winding down. And you know, like again, that was the question coming into the season, who is the six years closer? And certainly you would think and beat and again it can be multi if you swing the ball now, the play can typically you know, if not this, then this, and it can go to different players. But Horford and Harris

and all these guys can score the ball. And again I believe, you know, you obviously have to construct a play for a guy. But like by way of example, you know that ball, Horford kicked it out to Harris. If, as coach said to Bias, Fakes gets worn to fly by, maybe he dribbles in and slides it back to Horford for a layup. So I mean, any given play can have multiple options and things. You have to be able to be flexible and play and take what the defense

gives you. But Richardson is certainly a guy that all of a sudden has become that kind of player and as you say, standing up and taking the challenge and delivering. But it can be multiple guys, and but they have to be able to prove it and deliver with the game alm of mind. They've all done it in previous times, but they got to be able to do it on a consistent basis to be able to be a ball club that has these multiple options that can deliver down

the stretch. Good points by Tom mc ginnis. After a tough night for the seventy six ers, Tom will speak again on Wednesday. Good Night. Seventy Sixers loose to the Indiana Pacers, go winless on this two game road trip. They've now dropped six straight away from South Philadelphia one one ninety five. They were looking to bounce back after a second half got away from them Saturday in Dallas. Ben Simmons was simply put a beast in the first seven to the ball to Harris out Tom and again

Ben goes down low Horford trying to find him. He gets good position this time and he lays up going backward and he puts it up and in. Simmons with Roddon and Turner there scores it four love Sixers and Ben Simmons would double that total before he took his first break on the bench in the first quarter. Seventy Sixers led by a point after twelve minutes twenty three, twenty two. When Simmons returned to the court in the second quarter, he was in full fledge attack mode once again.

Here's Ben on a drive. You're the lane, muscles threw everybody in a two hand stop. Ben Simmons throws it down, time out Indianna. That put the seventy six Ers up thirty three, two thirty one. Ben Simmons with one of his best plays of the season to end the first half, rock and dribbles, stop starts, goes in on al him's the base light throws it away. Simmons with a breakout. He gets into the lane on Jeremy lab pass, slams

and look out Lab Ben Simmons like a freight train. Indeed, he was Ben Simmons Holly by himself taking care of that first half highlight real. He scored twenty points in the first half, his second highest total ever in his career in a first half seventy six ers like forty nine forty at the break. In the third quarter, things as they did Saturday at Dallas, started to tighten up

a little bit more. Indiana again making their shots. Their defense clamped down, but another strong play by Ben Simmons at the rack put the seventy sixers back in the lead. In the latter stages of the third shot clock at three, Simmons drives a jams it off man. He went for the right perimeter, bright down the lad and wraps it up and dunks the ball. I mean at sixty nine sixty seven. It was tied at sixty nine going into

the fourth. For as good as Ben Simmons was up to that point in the game, Josh Richardson began taking over in the fourth. He had his first two shots of the final period to give the seventy sixers a boost. They were going back and forth, back and forth with Indie until Richardson didn't nudged them in front. I'll top Josh Richardson with Biles Turner on him, there should be a misspack Brocktons got out. Here's Jock backing up fifteen

footer shot here bucket. It's good Eastern copp require the weak and Richardson able to get the bull up shot turner that made it eighty eight eighty seven seventy sixers Now. As hot as Richardson got, so two did Malcolm Brockden for the Indiana Pacers. He locked it up on a three pointer at ninety two ninety two. Josh Richardson with his final bucket and the seventy sixers final bucket of the ninety sixers really with three Now they got a fire shot by Josh Bits God, are you Jenny bad?

Josh Richardson with o'clock about the buzzer, a play most worthy of the are you kidding Me? Signature call from Tom McGinnis. Seventy Sixers back in front ninety four, but they would not score again the rest of the game, whereas the Pacers would walk to the line a couple more times, their final seven points coming from the free throw line, and they're one on one, ninety five win. But yeah, that three pointer from Richardson was spectacular line

drive straightaway, heavily contested about thirty feet out. He scored the final thirteen points of the game for the seventy Sixers, but it would not be enough in a six point loss. But the seventy Sixers they a shot forty one and a half percent for the game, the Pacers only thirty eight and a half percent. But here's where some of the big disparities and decisive disparities were. Seventy six Ers just six of thirty three from outside the arc and

fifteen of nineteen from the line. Pacers with ten three pointers, and they outscored the seventy sixers by ten from the free throw line. Also, the Pacers, they were really good in the second half at grabbing their offensive rebounds. They were plus one overall on the offensive boards. That helped their cause as well. Seventy six Ers with seven of their thirteen turnovers in the fourth quarter just nine turnovers for the Pacers. Sixers led by Ben Simmons, he scored

twenty of his twenty four in the first half. He had fourteen rebounds along with three assists twenty three for Josh Richardson, seventeen of those coming in the fourth quarter, fifteen four Tobias Harris, ten points, eight rebounds, five assists in two blocks for Al Horford for the Pacers twenty

one apiece for Malcolm Brogden and TJ. Warren. Warren with the big block on a Tobias Harris potential go ahead three with thirty seconds to go, Miles Turner with fourteen and ten and Demontes Sabonis with ten and sixteen for Indie and Justin Holliday with fourteen off the bench. TJ McConnell. He had four points, three assists in fourteen minutes with a loss to seventy six Ers and now twenty five and sixteen, they're a half game behind Indie for sixth

place in the East. The Pacers now twenty five and fifteen. You've been listening to rewind, look out for fresh episodes the day after every seventy six Ers game this season.