Tyrese Maxey and the Philadelphia 76ers appear to have learned a valuable lesson in their most recent game.
The Sixers will aim for a tougher, more complete effort Monday when they host the Los Angeles Clippers.
Philadelphia was hoping to notch its third win in four games Friday against the Detroit Pistons, but the team dropped a 114-105 decision.
The game was full of disappointments, as Maxey and VJ Edgecombe struggled with their shooting, Kelly Oubre Jr. left after three minutes with a knee hyperextension and, most importantly, the Sixers lost despite the Pistons resting Cade Cunningham and many of their other top players.
Following the game, there was plenty of talk about the Sixers’ mental and physical toughness.
“We have to play through it,” Edgecombe said. “It’s a grown-man sport. Expect to get hit. They’re known for being physical. They have the resume and history of being physical. I understand they’re trying to carry that on, but at the end of the day, (these are) physical games — refs are letting us play. Just expect physical games.”
Maxey led the way with 31 points but shot just 13 of 31 from the field. He is averaging 32.0 points on the season — among the best marks in the league.
Edgecombe finished 6 of 15 from the field but knocked down 4 of 8 from beyond the arc.
As a team, the Sixers managed only 15 points in the fourth quarter as the short-handed Pistons pulled away.
“It’s a 48-minute game,” Maxey said. “The games that we lost this year is because we had them lows. You can’t have those lows. We’ve been really, really good sometimes, but then those lows make us look really bad.”
Meanwhile, the Clippers fell to 1-1 on their seven-game road trip with Sunday’s 121-118 loss to the Boston Celtics. Despite 37 points from James Harden, the team lost for the seventh time in its last eight outings, dropping Los Angeles to a disappointing 4-9 on the season.
Ivica Zubac also had a productive game with 16 points and 12 rebounds, while John Collins pitched in with 17 points. On the downside, the Clippers committed 14 turnovers, allowed the Celtics to shoot 41% from 3-point range (16 of 39) and surrendered 20 offensive rebounds.
“We gave up 47 points off turnovers and offensive rebounds, so that wasn’t great,” Los Angeles coach Tyronn Lue said. “We’ve just got to make sure we take care of the basketball, pay attention to detail.”
Making things worse, Los Angeles forward Derrick Jones Jr. left with a knee injury after playing only five minutes.
“We won’t know until he gets re-evaluated; we’re not quite sure right now,” Lue said.
Jones’ absence would put even more pressure on Harden, who has scored 78 points while making 11 3-pointers over the last two games. In the last four games, the former Sixer is averaging 34 points, 9.8 rebounds and 8.8 assists while shooting 38 of 42 from the foul line.
This is the first matchup between the Clippers and Sixers this season. Los Angeles has won the last three meetings between the teams.
