The Oklahoma City Thunder were in a fight with the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday afternoon, quite literally when you think of the animosity between Joel Embiid and Russell Westbrook. Although, it was Paul George who came through late at the Wells Fargo Center, as his four-point play with 5.1 seconds left gave the Thunder a 117-115 victory on the road. To no surprise, both Westbrook and Embiid were involved in the wild finish, where both stars fouled each other hard, including the Thunder star fouling out of the game on en Embiid jumpshot. The foul on Embiid came while he was shooting a three-pointer, and he made all three of his free throws to tie the game at 113-apiece.
Jimmy Butler had a go-ahead layup before George's late-game heroics, as PG-13 finished with 31 points, six rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Westbrook added in 21 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, while Dennis Schroder backed him up with 21 points off the bench. The win snaps a bit of a skid for Oklahoma City, who had dropped five of their past six games, including on their home floor in overtime against the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night.
The Sixers had a chance for late-game heroics, but Butler missed on a three-point try as time expired, which extended Philadelphia's struggles against the Thunder. They have now dropped 19 games in a row against OKC, as they dropped to the four-seed in the Eastern Conference, a half-game behind the Indiana Pacers.
Embiid was a game-time decision due to back tightness, but he still finished with 31 points, eight rebounds, and six assists. JJ Redick chipped in 22 points, while Ben Simmons fell just short of a triple-double with 20 points, 15 rebounds, and nine assists. Philly was able to make this game a lot more interesting than it looked to be, as they trailed by as many as 16 points early on. The Sixers' big man did speak on Westbrook after the game, saying that Russell is "always in his feelings." Westbrook also touched on the drama between the two, admitting that he was not cool with Embiid.
These two teams will not meet against until February 28th in OKC, but until then, the Thunder move on to visit the New York Knicks on Monday afternoon. Meanwhile, the Sixers will host the Houston Rockets in a major showdown that night.
Jimmy Butler had a go-ahead layup before George's late-game heroics, as PG-13 finished with 31 points, six rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Westbrook added in 21 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, while Dennis Schroder backed him up with 21 points off the bench. The win snaps a bit of a skid for Oklahoma City, who had dropped five of their past six games, including on their home floor in overtime against the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night.
The Sixers had a chance for late-game heroics, but Butler missed on a three-point try as time expired, which extended Philadelphia's struggles against the Thunder. They have now dropped 19 games in a row against OKC, as they dropped to the four-seed in the Eastern Conference, a half-game behind the Indiana Pacers.
Embiid was a game-time decision due to back tightness, but he still finished with 31 points, eight rebounds, and six assists. JJ Redick chipped in 22 points, while Ben Simmons fell just short of a triple-double with 20 points, 15 rebounds, and nine assists. Philly was able to make this game a lot more interesting than it looked to be, as they trailed by as many as 16 points early on. The Sixers' big man did speak on Westbrook after the game, saying that Russell is "always in his feelings." Westbrook also touched on the drama between the two, admitting that he was not cool with Embiid.
These two teams will not meet against until February 28th in OKC, but until then, the Thunder move on to visit the New York Knicks on Monday afternoon. Meanwhile, the Sixers will host the Houston Rockets in a major showdown that night.