GT: 76ers (23-21) vs. Spurs (32-18)

[Nolan]

When: 6:30 PM MT, Jan 26th 2018
Where: AT&T Center, San Antonio TX

Going to be a interesting matchup! The 76ers are first in the league in pace and we are 29th, so it's going to be a battle of contrasting styles. We may be better suited to play their pace with Murray now in the starting 5 but slowing things down a bit won't hurt us either.

Key to this is going to be the battle in the paint. Embiid is a monster and we can't sleep on Saric either (he's sneaky and plays with a ton of energy) LMA and company need to bring their A games on both ends.

Go Spurs!!

[ducler]

[G R E Y]

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It's a tougher test than the record may indicate, but if we play our way we should be able to force them into mistakes and take advantage.

GO SPURS!

[wenzi_15]

embiid play poor still blowout spurs

Sent from my SM-C5000 using RealGM mobile app

[G R E Y]

"If I was a San Antonio fan tonight, I'd ask for my money back.” - Pop

Yep. It was that kind of night. The Sixers took it to us early and often, and deserved the win. More than the loss itself was how we lost, getting outhustled for loose balls and rebounds, getting beaten down the court in transition, not moving the ball, not moving without the ball, turning the ball over, getting caught in late clock shots and shot clock violations, and letting them have too much of what they wanted in our end.

They really took it to us in transition after forcing us out of plays we like to run (they’re well familiar with them). We usually establish LMA early, but he didn’t put up a shot until the 6:30 mark of the first quarter. Their defenders were right up on us before we could pass the ball and move them out of position, and in taking away driving and passing lanes, they forced us into one and done shots, and broken plays.

Speaking of shots, we put up 24 from the arc and hit only 3 (12.5%). In terms of manufacturing quality opportunities, we needed to look for other ways to score and give ourselves a cushion to build upon with 3s rather than looking to the long ball that wasn’t falling as a way to get back in the game. We did execute some back door cuts, and Tony did well to weave his way through their defenders into the key even if his layups, too, didn’t go in. But like with LMA who only put up 12 shots, making 7 for 18 points (his average is almost 18 shots per game), they limited Tony to only 3 shots for 2 points (he averages 8 attempts this season, 13 for his career), knowing that both are important offensive generators for us. Most of Pau’s shots came in the first half, but he finished second in scoring with 11 points (3-9) because he got to the line (team-high 5-6FTs). He looked a step slow on Embiid, and couldn’t get his usual give-and-go rhythm with Tony going. Our PG protege, Murray, got 10 points on 4-11 – second in FGAs behind LMA (2-2FTs), but missed some shots by choosing to drive down the middle a couple of times, challenging their shot blockers with predictable results. It was a catch-22 of our own making.

On the other end, their drives were like the parting of the sea; they got to the promised land of our rim at will. Simmons is a match-up nightmare, true, but we made it easier for him to carve us up inside; all but one of his makes were close to the basket. Embiid’s outside shot is smooth, too, and he’s not shy about taking it. He was made to feel right at home on our left side where all his makes came from. He had a double double and team-wide they made our night miserable on the glass, outrebounding us 50-36 (Murray led us in rebounding with 9, and assists with 5), including 12-5 on O – that’s a lot of extra possessions for Philly, a team that also leads the league in passes.

We seemed hesitant to shoot against their length, as if we couldn’t figure out our way through it, and looked confused about how to stop them from getting to our basket; too much miscommunication for too many back cuts and open players for them. It was almost as if we convinced ourselves that their height meant we could neither score nor defend well; it was a built-in mental excuse that we couldn’t get past.

After the 19-point deficit at the half, our starters put up 15 of the team’s 35 second half shots, hitting only 6 of them for 12 points. Our bench found a way to make up for it, though, led by Lauvergne’s 4-5 for 8 points. Bryn also had 8 points (3-8, plus 4 rebounds and 3 assists), including 2-5 from the 3 which finally, mercifully, went in. Bertans had the other 3, and scored 7 (3-8, and a solid overall night with 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, and a block). While the bench helped to bring some energy, only Mills got to the FT line, going 1-2. Still, we did keep up with them in the second half. It was 47-47 in the last two quarters, but of course, the first half did us in. Two good plays in a row were followed up by three or four poor ones for 5-point swings not in our favour. For too long, it was as if we had our feet and hands on backwards and our minds couldn’t figure out how to manage.

Losses happen. But we have to maintain effort and mindfulness when we play, executing by making smart decisions. How we respond now is what’s important.


Noteworthy individual and team achievements:

* Pau surpassed 40,000 career minutes played

* LMA:

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* This was our lowest scoring quarter, lowest scoring half, and lowest scoring game of the season. At least we got it all out of the way in one game.

Bigger than basketball:

Wearing the City uniforms, the Spurs honoured those who’ve served and serve in the armed forces. This always gives me chills. So humbling.

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I love this team, but man do we ever need some tough love to bring up our game. GO SPURS!