The Philadelphia 76ers are wrapping up their three-game road trip with a pit-stop in Indiana to face off against Myles Turner and the Pacers.
Sixers vs. Pacers game info
Who: Sixers (47-22) @ Pacers (32-38)
When: Saturday, March 18, 2023 at 7:00 PM EST
Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
How to watch: NBC Sports Philly
How to Listen: 97.5 The Fanatic
Latest with the Sixers
The Sixers are coming off a 121-82 victory against the Charlotte Hornets. The win marks the seventh consecutive win for Philadelphia
. Although the game was close early, Philly took control in the second quarter and never looked back.
After the game, Doc Rivers praised the Sixers. “I like how we played defensively, and I like how we moved the ball.”
The Sixers dominated the boards, accumulated more assists, and forced the Hornets into shooting just 33.7 percent from the field. As a team, the 76ers secured 62 rebounds and dished out 24 assists. Philly also scored 64 points in the paint, mainly because of the sheer dominance of Joel Embiid.
Embiid led the Sixers with 38 points, 13 rebounds, and four blocked shots. Because of Embiid’s steady play, the Sixers have the NBA’s best record since Christmas Day (28-10). In that span, Embiid has averaged 33.9 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.8 blocks. Just last week, his odds of winning NBA MVP surpassed both Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic.
On Joel Embiid, Rivers extolled the Sixers’ All-Star center. “He is scoring, but he is also dominating the game on the other end. He is not forcing anything. It’s all coming to him out of the flow.”
James Harden recorded another double-double, scoring 11 points and dishing out 10 assists. His backcourt mate, Tyrese Maxey, only took 10 shots on the night, but he scored 21 points in 28 minutes.
Off the bench, Shake Milton contributed 12 points, and Paul Reed secured 10 rebounds in only 12 minutes.
Last time they met
When the Sixers played the Pacers earlier this month, it was a full-fledged shoot-out. Philly beat Indiana 147-143 in a game that saw Joel Embiid put up 42 points on 16 field goal attempts. He shot 19 free throws that night and made all 19.
James Harden was the ultimate facilitator in that game, creating shots for his teammates. He had a game high 20 assists.
On the other side, Tyrese Haliburton had a stellar game. He scored 39 points on 12-of-19 from the field. The Pacers’ point guard also had 16 assists.
What to expect
The Sixers have won all three games this season against Indiana. The 76ers are just one game behind the Celtics for the second seed in the conference. Philly is just two and a half games behind Milwaukee for the top spot in the east.
Despite this game being the second of a back-to-back, expect the Sixers to attack the Pacers, who give up 118 points per game. Indiana is 26th in this defensive category, and they also allow opponents to shoot 37.2 percent from the 3-point line, which is near the bottom of the rankings. The only other teams that allow a better 3-point shooting percentage are Houston, San Antonio, and Toronto.
The Pacers are coming off a big victory over the Milwaukee Bucks, where they won 139-123. They are fighting for a play-in seed, sitting at the 11th spot in the conference. They have six of their last 10 games and are 19-16 on their home court. Expect Indiana to put up a solid effort to stay in the hunt for a postseason slot.
Former Sixer, TJ McConnell, will likely log major minutes in the absence of Tyrese Haliburton. McConnell is averaging 10.1 points and 5.9 assists in his last 10 games.
Betting odds per DraftKings
Spread: Sixers -6.5 | Pacers +6.5
Moneyline: Sixers -255 | Pacers +215
Over/Under: 232 points
Injury report
Sixers: Jalen Mcdaniels (doubtful)
Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton (out), Bennedict Mathurin (out), Kendall Brown (out), Chris Duarte (out)
