Philled with dismay
Shorthanded 76ers rout Bulls; DeRozan leaves game with leg injury
The Philadelphia 76ers played without James Harden, and then Joel Embiid departed with mild right calf tightness.
It didn’t matter.
Tyrese Maxey scored 16 of his 21 points during Philadelphia’s dominant first half, and the 76ers beat the Chicago Bulls 116-91 on Wednesday night.
De’Anthony Melton had 25 points and Tobias Harris finished with 20 as Philadelphia earned a split of its four-game season series against Chicago. Embiid had 12 points, seven rebounds and seven assists before sitting out for the second half.
Asked how concerned he was about Embiid’s calf injury, coach Doc Rivers responded: “Not much, not at all really.”
“I think he’ll be ready for the next game,” he continued. “It’s just precaution.”
The 29-year-old Embiid said he first felt the calf tightness during Monday night’s double-overtime loss to the Bulls. Then he felt it again in the first half Wednesday in Chicago.
The 7-foot center, one of the front-runners for league MVP, didn’t sound too concerned.
“Like I always say, it’s all about the playoffs, trying to make sure we get there healthy,” he said. “We’re just going to see how it goes the next few days.”
The Sixers (49-23) pulled within a half-game of idle Boston for second in the Eastern Conference behind Milwaukee (52-20).
Philadelphia had won eight in a row before Monday night’s loss to Chicago. But the 76ers jumped all over the Bulls in the rematch, opening a four-game road trip with an efficient offensive performance.
DeMar DeRozan departed in the third quarter with a right quad strain. DeRozan, who scored 25 points in the prior game, had a season-low four points on 0-for-7 shooting. Coby White scored 19 points for the Bulls (34-38).