By Tommy Matthews
Tyrese Maxey scored 27 points and the Sixers rallied from a 13-point deficit for a 119-108 win over the New York Knicks.
Joel Embiid had 35 points and 11 rebounds on 14-of-18 shooting, while James Harden added 20 points and 12 assists to help the Sixers gain a measure of revenge for a loss in New York on Sunday night when Philadelphia gave up a 21-point lead.
Philly flipped the script with a 27-15 margin in the fourth quarter, holding the Knicks to just 35% (6 of 17) shooting in the final 12 minutes.
“It’s always better when you have stops and you aren’t taking the ball out of the nets every single time,” Maxey said.
“You can advance the ball and cause matchup problems. You can get open 3s, and that’s hard to defend.”
Julius Randle and Jalen Brunson both scored 30 points for the Knicks.
Maxey was part of a key stretch late in the third quarter that changed the momentum of the contest.
After trailing by eight after a layup by Harden, Maxey stepped in front of a poor inbounds pass by R.J. Barrett and drilled a 3-pointer to cut a 10-point deficit to five and wake a sleepy Wells Fargo Center.
“That changed the game,” said Sixers forward Tobias Harris, who had 12 points.
“That shifted the momentum and energy. All night, he was able to give us that spark and gave everyone energy out there.”
Added Brunson: “That’s Tyrese Maxey for you. He’s a great player who is capable of a lot of things.”
