Joel Embiid inspires 76ers to rout of Heat, Mavs set down Suns
Philadelphia’s star center Joel Embiid returned from injury and the re-energized 76ers beat the Miami Heat 99-79 to claw back a game in their NBA playoff series.
Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks also avoided falling into a 3-0 hole with a 103-94 victory over the Phoenix Suns.
Embiid missed the Sixers’ double-digit losses in the first two games after he suffered a concussion and orbital fracture in the first-round series-clinching win over Toronto.
With his return confirmed just shortly before tip-off in Philadelphia, Embiid scored 18 points and pulled down 11 rebounds as the 76ers trimmed the deficit in the best-ofseven Eastern Conference series to 2-1.
“I tried to push as much as I can, I’m glad that we got the win,” said Embiid, who played in a protective mask but was still clearly hurting when he took a hand to the face late in the game.
Danny Green drained seven of his nine three-point attempts on the way to 21 points for Philadelphia. Tyrese Maxey scored all 21 of his points in a scintillating secondhalf performance.
Maxey picked up the slack after former MVP James Harden keyed the Sixers in the first half on the way to 17 points and eight assists.
Jimmy Butler led the Heat with 33 points. Tyler Herro added 14 off the bench but point guard Kyle Lowry, back after missing four games with a hamstring strain, didn’t score.
In Dallas, Luka Doncic came up just shy of a tripledouble with 26 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists. And the Mavs’ Slovenian star finally got some support as Jalen Brunson scored 28 points to lead five Dallas players to score in double figures.
Most importantly, the Mavericks clamped down defensively on the top-seeded Suns, who were harried into 17 turnovers.
Jae Crowder led the Suns with 19 points while star point guard Chris Paul -- celebrating his 37th birthday -- was held to 12 and Devin Booker scored 18.