Sixers lay an egg to give Pistons first win in Tobias Harris’ return to Philly

Tobias Harris got his revenge game in his return to Philly as the Pistons picked up their first win vs. the Sixers.

Revenge is a dish best served with $180 million on the side.

The Sixers embarrassingly lost the Tobias Harris revenge game to the Detroit Pistons 105-95 Wednesday night.

Tyrese Maxey led all scorers with 32, along with seven assists. He shot 12-of-25 from the field but was the only Sixer who shot it remotely well. The only other Sixers to reach double figures were Kelly Oubre Jr and Jared McCain with 13 and 12, respectively.

Jaden Ivey led the Pistons in scoring with 23 while Cade Cunningham had 22. Tobias Harris finished with 18 points and 14 rebounds. He shot 8-of-18 from the field.

Here are some thoughts at the buzzer.

First Quarter

• After losing Jaden Ivey one of the first possessions of the game, the Sixers’ defense was lock down to start this one. They only allowed two field goals over the first half the quarter including the three from Ivey. They also forced six turnovers in the quarter.

• The Sixers came into tonight ranked 21st in three pointers attempted in this young season. Whether it was an emphasis tonight, they got em up early as seven of their first 10 shot attempts were from beyond the arc. Maxey only got one of his threes to fall, but had a very productive quarter with his drives, finishing with 10 points and three assists.
• Philly didn’t have much else going on offense other than Maxey in the first, but Guerschon Yabusele had some nice moments in the two-man game with Kyle Lowry. He popped out to hit a three from above the break, a box he still needed to tick in the shooting department. He also rolled and bullied Isiah Stewart for a bucket inside. Even when he forgot to pick Stewart up in the lane on defense, Lowry was there to bail him out and strip Stewart. The Sixers led by four after the first.

Second Quarter

• Yabusele’s second quarter minutes didn’t go as well, but in his defense the whole team opened it up with some shaky offense. A couple fumbled passes and possessions ended with too much passing resulted in a couple airballs. The Pistons responded with a 15-0 run that a timeout was not able to stop.
• Just like Sunday, it appeared the Sixers needed Maxey and Andre Drummond to get them back on track. After earning more free throws off an offensive rebound, Drummond caused a steal that lead to a Maxey midrange pull up. Maxey came right back down the floor and did it again, this time causing a Pistons’ timeout. That midrange is going to be so key for Maxey in these games where he’s on his own.
• Jared McCain had some nice moments. He was able to get to the free throw line a couple times and threw a nice jump pass to Maxey from the baseline, but he also had some moments where he looked overmatched as well. He was short on everything, and Ivey was easily able to steal a ball McCain was trying to pass. The Sixers are very desperate for shooting at the moment though so he’s certainly worth a shot. The Sixers went into the half trailing the Pistons by nine.

Third Quarter

• It was defense that drove the offense to start the second half, because the half court offense continued to look like a mess. Oubre hit a three after being left open, Maxey was able to poke one away from Cunningham for a fast break layup which helped the Sixers cut it to four before the Pistons went on a run again.
• Halfway through the third, Tyrese Maxey was shooting 10-of-18 from the field. The rest of the Sixers were 11-of-33. Their shot selection could have been better, and their decision making could have been better, but there is just not enough scoring capability around Maxey right now. It’s even more concerning that it’s looked like this against two of the worst teams in the league in Detroit and Toronto.
• Some life was shown towards the end of the quarter after Maxey and McCain were both able to get to the rim on drives. Maxey found KJ Martin for an impressive alley-top that woke up the crowd and cut the lead to 15. The Pistons took the momentum right back after Ivey was fouled on the drive. The offensive rebound fell to the Pistons and Ivey put it back up to complete the four-point play. The Sixers trailed by 18 after three.

Fourth Quarter

• There were more opportunities for life as Yabusele hit another three from the break, then Jalen Duren fouled out about a minute into the quarter. The Sixers were able to capitalize with a run that cut the lead to 10 and caused a Detroit timeout.

• The Pistons seemed to answer every run the Sixers had in them. Harris knocked down a jumper and a layup to score the first two baskets out of the timeout, because of course. Earning extra possessions is something the Sixers have done relatively well so far, but not tonight. The Pistons won the offensive rebounding battle 12-8.
• The sequence where an offensive rebound that led to a corner three that pushed the lead to 14 ended up being the nail in the coffin for the night. Aside from some nice McCain drives, throw this game film in the dumpster.
• The Sixers’ next context is this Saturday at home against the Memphis Grizzlies at 7:30 ET, though there will almost certainly be plenty of drama between now and then.