PHILADELPHIA — In a game where Nick Nurse admitted being unsure where his back-up point guard minutes would come from, the 76ers soon enough had to fill the void of starting point guard minutes, too.
Tyrese Maxey left with a back contusion midway through the third quarter of Monday night’s 119-102 loss to Portland, a game that the 76ers began with three starters injured.
Anfernee Simons scored 34 points, and a 35-20 edge in the third quarter made the difference for Portland.
Andre Drummond posted season-highs of 25 points and 18 rebounds to lead five Sixers in double figures. They are 2-12 since the end of January, and at 21-39, they move into a tie with Brooklyn for the sixth-worst record in the NBA. The Sixers’ first-round pick in 2025 is top-6 protected or it conveys to Oklahoma City.
Jeff Dowtin, thanks mostly to his defensive ability against Steph Curry, made his return to the point-guard rotation Saturday night after only four appearances in February. With Quentin Grimes, on an 18-for-24 shooting tear on the way to 44 against the Warriors, playing well off the ball, Dowtin became the choice Saturday over Jared Butler to run the point behind Maxey.
Dowtin and Grimes were out there again a lot Monday when Maxey hit the deck hard on a drive to the basket with 6:42 left in the third. He needed help walking off the court, grabbing his back, and did not return. He shot 2-for-13 for five points and six assists in 23:11 on court.
Grimes scored 14 points to go with a career-high nine assists and six rebounds. Dowtin supplied 11 points in 19 bench minutes.
The Sixers led the entire first half, stretching the lead as high as 12 and taking a 61-56 lead into the break. Nine of 10 rotation players scored, led by 16 points and 11 rebounds from Drummond. Lonnie Walker IV supplied eight points, three rebounds and two assists off the pine in the opening half.
“I think that he is going to find some shots out there,” Nurse said of Walker before the game. “I think he’s starting to get a little more comfortable, looks like he’s going to make some more and I think that’ll continue. He is a shooter, a slash scorer, just trying to get him a little more engaged, though, in other parts of the game. He’s going to have to defend good players.”
Walker finished with 13 points. Justin Edwards, restored to the starting lineup, scored 16 points before having to be helped up off the court in the final minute.
Simons started to assert himself in the second quarter, then poured in 14 points in the third. The Blazers started the second half on an 11-1 run and never trailed after the break.
Shaedon Sharpe (20 points, 11 rebounds) and Donovan Clingan (13 points, 13 boards) both collected double-doubles. Duop Reath hit three 3-pointers off the bench for 13 points. Portland dominated on the boards with a 61-43 edge.
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Paul George missed the game with left groin soreness, which Nurse said cropped up Saturday. “He had a little problem at halftime the other night, but he was able to continue,” Nurse said. “Obviously, hasn’t got much better since.”
Kelly Oubre, who has led the team in games played this year with 56, missed out with an illness. He had been averaging 16.8 point per game on 51.8 percent shooting in the last 10 games.
“He’s been pretty much doing a little of everything, mostly consistently,” Nurse said. “He’s going to defend one of their better players. Most of the nights, he’s been scoring, right around 20 is kind of a number, that he’s been around plus or minus. Really got some key buckets, got to the front of the rim. He’s done a little bit of everything for us.”
Source: Berkshire mont
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