Big runs in both the 1st and 3rd quarters kept the Raptors in the game. Timely shooting in the 1st by Fred Van Vleet (4/4 from 3 in the 1Q including a ridiculous circus shot avoiding a shot clock violation) and Chris Boucher in the 4Q (15 of his 17 pts), helped them pull off the W.
The Raptors are now 1 game over .500 and in 5th place in the Conference with the win over the Sixers. The final score was 110-103 after the Raps were down 3 at half.
Starting the game small, the Raptors looked overmatched as the Sixers were dominant getting to the free throw line, forcing turnovers and winning handedly on the glass. Simmons was playing the game like he was shot out of a cannon, full head of speed whenever he had the ball directly towards the basket. There was some missed shots by the Raptors that piled on to the poor start and it seemed like they were going to be in for a long night.
They pivoted from the small ball strategy early however, putting Baynes in the game and their pace became less frenetic and offensive roles more defined. They finished the 1st on a 14-0 run, led by the heroic shooting mentioned above by FVV. It helped when he was getting freed up with screens like this:
In the 2nd quarter, the Sixers took a hold of the momentum again led by Simmons on both sides of the ball. His on ball defence against both Siakam and Van Vleet at different portions of the game was a great example of the versatility he brings to that side of the ball. He will be an easy 1st team All Defense selection this year and should be in the running for Defensive Player Of The Year (tough to beat out Gobert though).
3rd quarter was similar to the start of the 1st. Raptors woes were exacerbated by Norman Powell’s struggles shooting and turning the ball over (6 total). He ended up only playing 26 mins as the Raps went to Terrence Davis earlier then usual and also played a jumbo lineup for a stretch in the 4th. The Raptors went on a run again at the end of the 3rd (20-2 this time) and were down 1 headed to the 4th.
The 4th quarter was Chris Boucher time. Nick Nurse continued to punish Dwight Howard and the Sixers by putting him into continuous pick and roll action as Boucher unloaded 3 after 3. Finally the Sixers pulled Howard and downsized the Raps by putting Tobias Harris on Boucher. Nurse called a rub screen at the top and Boucher unloaded another shot from behind the arc on Harris just for good measure. At that point it was all Raptors. As mentioned before, they spent a few minutes in a jumbo package lineup with FVV, Siakam, OG, Boucher and Baynes before Norm returned to the court with 2 minutes left in place of Boucher to close out the game.
Embiid struggled with his offence all game (6-20 from the field) although his counting stats still look strong (25 pts, 17 rebs). Nurse’s defensive schemes really seem to give him fits, and makes him shoot from angles he’s not comfortable in. Of course this type of strategy can only work if you have the players to execute. In previous years it has been Marc Gasol renting space inside Embiid’s head. Tonight it was Aaron Baynes. Baynes ended up playing 29 mins off the bench, with a solid 8 pts and 5 rebs but most importantly he was the key guy in matching minutes with Joel and keeping him off his spot.
Another strong win, 4 in a row overall with 3 of those being the Bucks (x2) and the Sixers. The schedule continues to be unforgiving with Philly again on Tuesday followed by the Heat in another back to back, their 3rd in three weeks. They close off the month with Houston and Chicago. Winning 3/4 in the next 7 days would really put a cherry on top of a strong month that has vaulted the Raps back into the front half of the playoff race in the Eastern Conference.
Player of the Game: Ben Simmons was the best player on the floor in a losing cause (28 pts, 9 rebs, 5 asts, 9/11 FG). He was able to use his size and physicality to get wherever he wanted with the ball. I will have to break down the match up data further but it seemed like OG was the strongest on defense against him. Pascal struggled to keep Ben in front of him and Bembry battled for every inch but ended up fouling him and sending him to the line (10/14 from the game).
Honourable mention again goes to Siakam (23 pts, 7 rebs, 8 asts, 1 stl). He was the only semblance of offence the Raptors had at the beginning of the 1st Quarter. The rest of the team seemed tentative taking it into the paint, but Pascal was relentlessly attacking in the first 6-8 minutes of the game. Defensively he was his usual Swiss Army knife self, which helps the aggressive switching scheme especially when OG is in the game as well. It must be a nightmare for these teams to have Anunoby, Siakam, Bembry, and FVV all taking turns guarding them sometimes in the same possession. Pascal’s passing has also really gone up a level this year. He is inviting the double-teams now and looks to make the smart pass. Due to his tough start he will be on the outside looking in for an All Star spot, however I wouldn’t be surprised if his name is being short listed for an All NBA team spot again at the end of the season.
Box And One 