Joel Embiid had 36 points,12 rebounds and six assists to lead the host Philadelphia 76ers past the Sacramento Kings 103-101 on Saturday night.
The Sixers held on after taking a 103-93 lead on an Embiid layup with 2:28 left.
Embiid was 10 of 18 from the field and 14 of 18 from the free-throw line while scoring at least 25 points for the 17th game in a row.
For the 76ers, Tobias Harris added 16 points and eight rebounds, Tyrese Maxey contributed 13 points and Danny Green had 11.
The Kings played without De’Aaron Fox for the fourth straight game because of his sore left ankle.
Tyrese Haliburton led the reeling Kings with a career-high 38 points, Harrison Barnes added 16 and Davion Mitchell 15. Richaun Holmes also had 10 for the Kings, who lost their sixth consecutive game.
Barnes missed a potential game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer.
The Kings built a 52-35 lead late in the second quarter with stellar defense and efficient shooting. Philadelphia looked out of sync for large stretches, especially on offense.
Sacramento led 61-50 at halftime thanks in large part to Haliburton’s 16 points.
Embiid paced the Sixers with 12, though he only hit 1 of 5 shots from the field.
After the Sixers closed with 62-55, the Kings ripped off an 8-0 run capped by Haliburton’s steal and dunk with 7:26 to go in the third.
Matisse Thybulle responded with a 3-pointer, and Embiid added a layup to close back within 10.
Green and Georges Niang each converted a 3-pointer, and the Sixers cut the deficit to 79-76 with 1:52 remaining in the third. Sacramento held an 83-81 advantage at the end of the quarter.
The Sixers came out aggressively and took a 90-87 lead early in the fourth. Maxey soon hit a trey to cap a 12-0 run and propel the Sixers to a six-point lead.
Sacramento went 10 consecutive possessions without scoring.
Haliburton ended the skid with a deep 3-pointer from the top of the key with 4:48 left. The Sixers extended their lead to 96-90 when Embiid responded with a trey.
Haliburton became red hot down the stretch with 14 straight points. He hit a difficult 3-pointer from the corner to close within 103-101 with 11.1 seconds to go, and that ended the scoring.
–Field Level Media