The Toronto Raptors have lost their third game in a row, this time against the Philadelphia 76ers. Nick Nurse and the boys couldn’t interrupt Philly’s unbeaten streak at home, which now extends through 12 games. The final result of this one was 110-104 for the hosts, who had a much bigger advantage but couldn’t keep it in the end.
Toronto opened the match better and had a 12-6 lead, which was soon erased. Hosts would close the first, and open the second period with a furious 13-4, which pulled them away to a safe distance. Toronto would come back a few minutes after, but that was everything they did in the first half.
“There was just wacky play after wacky play to end the first quarter,” Nurse explained how he saw those moments of his side.
A 16-5 surge 76ers delivered before the pause was enough for them to reach a 15-point gap, 57-42.
“Our rhythm wasn’t great and we didn’t shoot it great,” Toronto coach concluded.
As time went by in the third period, the 76es were harassing the guests, not allowing them to make anything notable on the court. They would simply shut down all the offensive solutions for the champs while being very confident on the other end of the floor.
The same was in the final period. Philly was up 100-80 when Tobias Harris nailed a three with 6:33 to go. But for some unknown reason, their level of play dropped in the final few minutes, and the guests came down to five points.
Brett Brown was furious at his players, and he would often be very loud from the sidelines, suggesting to them what to do. Joel Embiid made a few bad plays, which made his coach a bit frustrated. Therefore Brown benched the big fella, but had to put him back in the game again.
Those few minutes made all the present at Wells Fargo Center pretty worried, but eventually, the home team succeeded in winning this one. Yet, it spoiled the impression made throughout the game, especially for Brown.
“Where do we begin?” Brown told about the finish. “The way it ended left a little bit of a sour taste.”
When mentioning Embiid, he was once again under heavy pressure of the Raptors’ defense, which limited him to 11 points and 5 assists. After being shut down and kept to zero points in the first meeting in Toronto, he played much better, but it is evident that the Raptors have a key for the Process. He would end the game with 7 turnovers tonight.
Philly (17-7) are still unbeaten at home, but they have a tough challenge coming up with the Denver Nuggets. This game is set for Tuesday night, and after that, Brown’s team heads for Boston to meet the Celtics.
Meanwhile, the Raptors (15-7) travel to Chicago to meet the Bulls on second of back-to-back nights. Following that, the champs have a three-game homestand coming up, starting this Wednesday against the Clippers. After that, they await the Brooklyn Nets and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
