With Embiid out, Simmons and Harris help 76ers take 2-1 lead over Nets
NEW YORK — Joel Embiid took off his warmup gear and changed into street clothes, his left knee feeling too sore to play.
Even with the All-Star center sitting down, the Philadelphia 76ers were flying high in Game 3.
Ben Simmons scored a career playoff-high 31 points, Tobias Harris added 29 points and 16 rebounds, and the 76ers shook off the absence of their leading scorer to beat the Brooklyn Nets 131-115 on Thursday for a 2-1 lead in the first-round series.
The 76ers relied on Simmons slashing to the basket, and Harris and JJ Redick shooting from the perimeter.
“We have the pieces to get games, to complete games and I think everybody in the organization knows that,” Simmons said.
Simmons was 11-for-13 from the field, repeatedly getting to the rim even with the Nets sagging well off him in hopes he would shoot a jumper. He added nine assists and eventually quieted a crowd that loudly booed him every time he touched the ball early.
Harris had his playoff highs in both points and rebounds, and was 6-for-6 from 3-point range. Redick was 5-of-9 behind the arc and finished with 26 points.
“Listen, I think their big players came to play,” Nets coach Kenny Atkinson said. “Ben had a great game, I thought JJ was great, Tobias also hit some big 3s.”
Embiid warmed up before the game but the 76ers announced shortly before the start that he wouldn’t be available because of a sore left knee. Greg Monroe started in his place and had nine points and 13 rebounds.
“Just came in, obviously with Joel down that’s a big scoring loss that we had there,” Harris said. “So just had to be aggressive from the start.”
D’Angelo Russell and Caris LeVert each scored 26 points for the Nets, who host Game 4 on Saturday. They have dropped the last two games after surprising the No. 3 seed in the opener in Philadelphia.
“When, arguably, their best player sits out, you have to take advantage of that and we just couldn’t perform on it,” Nets center Jarrett Allen said.