3 biggest takeaways for Sixers following play-in win over Magic
· Yahoo Sports
PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia 76ers handled their business on Wednesday as they knocked off the Orlando Magic 109-97 to advance to the playoffs for the first time since 2024. The Sixers had a miserable 2024-25 season as they were ravaged by injuries, but Philadelphia was able to get back at it with the win over the Magic.
Tyrese Maxey had 31 points and six assists for Philadelphia, Kelly Oubre Jr. had 19 points, and Paul George added 16, five rebounds, and five assists with two steals. VJ Edgecombe had 19 points and 11 rebounds while Andre Drummond chipped in with 13 points, 10 rebounds, and three blocks.
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Here are the three biggest takeaways following the win:
Maxey takes over
The Magic were hard-charging in the fourth quarter and had cut a double-digit deficit down to just one after Anthony Black drilled a 3-pointer with 7:56 left. Maxey then ripped off seven straight points to put Philadelphia back up eight and the Magic never seriously challenged again. The 2-time All-Star ripped Orlando's collective heart out and allowed the Sixers to then cruise to a win from there. Things have been up and down for Maxey since he returned from a right finger tendon strain, but the one constant has been his work in the second half to lift Philadelphia on his shoulders.
"I think he's been doing a bit of that lately," said coach Nick Nurse. "As far as understanding, we need kind of his greatness at the right time. Not as meaningful game the other night, but we looked really bad in the first half as a team, and he just came out and just decided to spark the team, and then everybody kind of got in the flow. So, it's kind of the same. I thought it wasn't easy. They were putting a lot of people in his way. So, I thought he was really patient with when he decided to get downhill, and the decisions he made late."
Sixers limit Orlando's wings
The Magic rely heavily on Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner creating offense off the dribble, and the Sixers did a fantastic job of limiting them both. Of course, Wagner is dealing with an ankle injury so that limited him a bit, but the Sixers held him in check as he shot just 5-for-11 with 12 points. Banchero shot just 7-for-22 from the floor and 0-for-5 from deep while committing six turnovers in 36 minutes. Philadelphia did a great job of limiting them both in this instance.
"Discipline," Drummond said. "Knowing that they like to do the sweep through. Paolo with the spin move, and he gets fouled a lot of those plays. We're very disciplined. We were there to help each other. When he did make those spins, we were there to get the steal or make him make a bad decision. So it was great to see."
Oubre providing a lift on 3-point shots
The Magic left Oubre open on quite a few occasions in the first quarter and he drilled three, including a corner one at the buzzer to give the Sixers a 4-point lead after one quarter. The 11-year veteran from Kansas has worked extremely hard on that shot and shot a career-high 36% from deep in the regular season. He was able to set the tone early and it makes life easier for everybody on the roster when he is able to knock down shots at the type of level he was able to get against Orlando.
"It’s always a weight lifted whenever you make your first couple," Oubre said after the win. "I actually missed my first two, I think, or something like that, and just staying with it. If I was gonna be that open, then I'm gonna shoot it with confidence, and once I see one go in, I'm able to just string together a good little run of 3s. So tonight was a great game, but on to the next. Gotta be consistent with that, if that's gonna be the game plan going forward."
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: 3 biggest takeaways for Sixers following play-in win over Magic