Embiid hits two free throws as 76ers hold off Pistons late
DETROIT » Joel Embiid had 33 points and 14 rebounds, and his two free throws with 7.2 seconds left helped the Philadelphia 76ers seal a 114-110 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Saturday night.
Ben Simmons added 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the 76ers, and he made a couple big free throws of his own in the final minute. Philadelphia is atop the Eastern Conference but didn’t push its lead over the last-place Pistons into double figures until early in the fourth quarter. That was when Dwight Howard’s dunk put the 76ers up 99-88.
Detroit trailed 110-108 after Jerami Grant made a
3-pointer with 28.5 seconds left, but Simmons calmly made two free throws to push the lead to four. Delon Wright’s layup made it 112-110, but Embiid closed
the game out with his free throws and finished 12 of 17 from the line.
Wayne Ellington scored 17 points for the Pistons, who led 63-61 at halftime and kept the game competitive despite being without Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose. NETS 128, HEAT 124 » Kevin Durant scored 31 points, Kyrie Irving took over late and had 28 and Brooklyn overcame Bam Adebayo’s career-high 41 points to beat Miami.
James Harden finished with 12 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds as the Nets won for the first time with their three superstars playing together. TIMBERWOLVES 120, PELICANS 110 » Naz Reid scored 20 points to lead a balanced offensive effort and Minnesota beat New Orleans.
Anthony Edwards scored 18 points and Jared Vanderbilt set career highs with 16 points and 11 rebounds for Minnesota.