SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio Spurs (14-38) will face the Philadelphia 76ers (33-17) tonight at the AT&T Center. The Spurs are riding a seven-game losing skid and are 1-0 versus the Sixers this season.
Malaki Branham, Josh Richardson and Keita Bates-Diop all started the game due to injuries to other players, and all got to scoring early. Branham started things off with a mid-range jumper out of the pick and roll, then J-Rich drained a three to force a quick timeout. KBD doubled Joel Embiid and ripped a steal, then swished a triple, then eurostepped in on the next possession for a layup.
Keldon Johnson drove for an and-1, then Branham drove for a layup and grabbed a steal. The Sixers started slow, but Embiid and Harden quickly righted the ship. Coach Pop picked up a tech after a missed foul call.
GAME REWIND
The Spurs are coming off a 119-109 loss versus the Kings.
Malakai Branham had 22 points and five assists, both career-highs, to lead the team while Keldon Johnson added 18 points. Jakob Poeltl finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds while Josh Richardson recorded 19 points in the loss.
Jeremy Sochan and Tre Jones exited the game in the first half due to injuries.
“We still compete. The guys don’t give up. It’s hard to fault them [young Spurs] for a lot because they don’t really know a lot, so that’s where we try to teach them a little bit,” Richardson said. “Hopefully, it’s starting to go through a little better but they’re competitive.”
INJURY REPORT
San Antonio recalled guard Blake Wesley from the Austin Spurs.
LOCKED ON SPURS PREVIEWS SIXERS-SPURS
THE UNIFORMS
The Spurs will be in their Statement Edition jerseys today.
FIVE THINGS TO WATCH
1. The Sixers have won seven-straight road games.
2. The Sixers are 12-0 on the road when leading after the third period.
3. The Sixers are 17-9 versus teams with a below .500 record this season.
4. The Spurs are 6-4 versus the top-8 Eastern Conference teams this season.
5. The Spurs are allowing opponents to score an average of 120.6 points per game at home.
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