After a Game 1 more suffered than expected, the 76ers did not complicate their lives in the second game. Doc Rivers’ men added another victory, this time by a placid 120-95, and placed a 2-0 in their favor that leaves the tie quite on track on the eve of this trip to the capital. There, the Wizards will try to rebuild themselves, but what was seen this morning does not exactly invite optimism regarding their options to give some excitement to this first round.
And it is that Philadelphia dominated the meeting practically from beginning to end, offering a good image and remembering why they have been the leaders of the Eastern Conference. The locals passed the entire second with double-digit advantages, and in fact they were gradually increasing the distance on the scoreboard until it reached 27 points. It was undoubtedly a more than welcome quiet night, and now they must try to maintain those good feelings at home.
Those from Pennsylvania were led by Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, both authors of 22 goals with great accuracy data, as they finished with 73.3% and 66.7% in field goals respectively. The point guard, very aggressive in his penetrations and finishes, also managed to add 9 rebounds and 8 assists, while the pivot dominated both the paint and the average and long distance in the only 26 minutes he was on the track.
In general, all the big men on the team had a lot of rest, as no starters made it to 30 minutes, and the crash allowed even those at the bottom of Rivers’ rotation to have some time to show off.
Beal is left alone
The Wizards, for their part, recalled some early-season stages in which Bradley Beal had to pull the car alone, usually without success. It was what happened on this occasion, since the guard, author of 33 points, scored more than the other four members of the starting quintet together, but his good figures did not help his team to remain in the game in the face of the generalized disaster of their classmates.
The night was especially unfortunate for Russell Westbrook, who experienced a very poor match in sports that ended up having physical consequences. The point guard could not pass the 10 goals after staying at 2/10 in field shots, and was forced to leave the duel early after suffering a sprained right foot, an area in which he had already reflected some discomfort previously. As he left, a fan threw popcorn at him from the stands, a detail that reflects that the return of the public to the stands has its pros and cons.
It will be necessary to see in what situation Russ arrives at Game 3, which will take place on Saturday, as Brooks’ men will need their best version if they want to have a chance to reengage in the tie.
(Portrait photo: Tim Nwachukwu / Getty Images)
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