Another miserable loss befitting a miserable season as Sixers lose at buzzer to Nets

The Sixers’ effort was abysmal to start the game before a late comeback attempt was thwarted by buzzer-beating offensive rebound.

Just when you think this team has reached its bottom, they show they can always go lower.

The Sixers managed to lose a heartbreaker 105-103 to the Brooklyn Nets in the battle for the 11th seed in the East (or the 12th, depending on how you look at it). Nic Claxton tipped back the game-winning basket with 0.2 seconds remaining.

Tyrese Maxey led all scorers with 31 points shooting 10-of-23 from the field. Joel Embiid shot just 4-of-13 for 14 points and seven rebounds. He did not play the fourth quarter. Paul George finished with 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Cam Johnson led the Nets with 23.

Here are some thoughts from the Center.

First Quarter

• For the first time in what feels like forever, the Sixers opened the game with some juice thanks to Maxey. He took a drop pass all the way to the basket to open the scoring, then hit a pair of threes coming off of screens. That did not extend to the other end of the floor though as Brooklyn made five of their first six shots.

• It didn’t take long for the Nets to outpace them though as the Sixers’ defense continued to be non-existent. They just get shredded in pick-and-rolls with this hampered version of Embiid. Lonnie Walker IV checked in for the first time here, and David Roddy notably saw some early minutes over Guerschon Yabusele. Roddy was found by Embiid on a backdoor cut, but Walker didn’t record a stat in the quarter.
• Yabu wasn’t the backup five either as Andre Drummond checked in to finish the quarter. Drummond had an odd moment where he was T’d up after exchanging words with Trendon Watford. While Maxey looked inspired from the jump, few else did as the Sixers trailed by 10 after one.

Second Quarter

• Finally checked into the game, Yabusele left his feet and threw a pass right to a Net on his first touch of the game, one of four Sixers’ turnovers to start the quarter. Drummond did get a couple of easy baskets, one thanks to a dump off from Yabu, but also picked up three fouls quickly prompting an early Embiid return.

• Ironically, it was one of George’s better starts on offense as he was having some success as a driver. He got all the way in for a layup and a couple trips to the free throw line in the half. Little of it seemed to matter though with an inability to get any stops. Brooklyn shot 81% at the rim in the half.
• After a timeout and a loud round of booing, the Sixers cobbled together a couple decent possessions out of Embiid post-touches. Even that stretch included an ugly turnover and a breakdown leading to a wide open layup. The Nets took an 11-point lead into the break.

Third Quarter

• More of the same as it took the Sixers over three minutes to record their first field goal of the second half. The defensive woes remained the same as the Nets opened the half with three open layups and a trip to the line.
• The offense could certainly do with more structure, but the team’s inability to just hit open jump shots makes it harder to swing momentum back their way. Over halfway through the third and they were shooting 25% from three, with only three Sixers having actually made one.
• Embiid slipped awkwardly and came up limping after being stuffed on a drive. He didn’t leave the game but it will be interesting to see how his body responds to that in the coming days.
• The Sixers finally put together a quarter of respectable defense as Brooklyn shot 43% from the field in the third. They only shot 36% in the frame themselves though, making their progress slow. After an alright start, George quickly faded into the background. He had only attempted four shots as they trailed the Nets by seven after three.

Fourth Quarter

• This time the second unit went small with Yabusele at the five. The offense still couldn’t hit a jumper but they were getting enough stops and layups to chip away, initiated by George who was finally getting involved again. Yabu grabbing a couple of offensive rebounds was a big help as well.
• The lead continued to be cut into as the Sixers continued to attack the basket. They finally began to come away with steals out of their double teams as well. A Quentin Grimes three gave the Sixers the lead with four minutes to go. Notably, Embiid did not check in at his normal time in the fourth quarter around the eight-minute mark. He was wearing a very big wrap around his left leg on the bench.

• Brooklyn responded to a Maxey three with another easy bucket in the lane. They re-took the lead off a broken play on the following possession. After Nic Claxton split a pair to make it a three-point game, both teams exchanged misses. Maxey ran quickly off a miss to tie the game back up. It appeared that the Nets’ attempt at a game-winner rimmed out, but Claxton swooped in to put it back to just beat the buzzer.

• Another big matchup for the 10th seed is next up as the Sixers welcome the Chicago Bulls to town Monday night at 7 p.m. ET.