The Philadelphia 76ers have won six games in a row. Last night, Tobias Harris emerged as the savior against the New York Knicks. Even with the Knicks on the second night of a back-to-back, the Sixers struggled to get things moving until late in the game, when they outscored the Knicks 26-14 in the fourth quarter to come away with a 99-96 victory. Harris finished with 30 points on an efficient 11-for-20 shooting, while adding six rebounds, two assists, one steal and two blocks.

There were five Sixers that scored in double-digits last night, Simmons dropped 16 points with 13 rebounds and seven assists while shifting defensive assignments between RJ Barrett and Julius Randle. Seth Curry scored 20 points and was 4-for-7 from beyond the arc. Dwight Howard (11) and Furkan Korkmaz (12) provided an excellent boost off the bench

In the end, the Sixers won this game defensively and dominated in the closing minutes to win the game. The Sixers defensive rating is only second to the Los Angeles Lakers. They have held their last two opponents to under 100 points and continue to grind out wins with Joel Embiid sidelined.

Tonight, on the second game of a back-to-back, the Sixers will welcome the surging Milwaukee Bucks to Philadelphia. If anyone can explain to me why the Sixers are playing a back-to-back when they don’t have another game until Saturday, I’m all ears. The Bucks enter tonight and don’t play again until Saturday either. Given the fact that the game is on ESPN, I’m sure the national programming overlords have something to do with it, but I digress.

Let’s take a look at tonight’s game and why the Sixers will beat the Bucks without Joel Embiid.

The Milwaukee Bucks are red hot coming into Philadelphia. They are looking for their fifth straight win and 10th win in the last 11 games. Of course, they are led by none other than Giannis Antetokounmpo, who enters tonight after three straight games with a tripe-double. Giannis ripped apart the Washington Wizards, scoring 31 points with 15 rebounds and 10 assists in a 133-122 win.

Since losing five straight games, the Bucks have certainly found their groove in the last 10. Their only loss was to the Denver Nuggets and they have lead the NBA in scoring at 120 points per game and in rebounds, at roughly 50 boards a night.

Sounds pretty scary, right?

Honestly, not really. The Bucks have simply done what they are supposed to do in beating bad teams. Their only marquee opponent during their little hot streak was against the Los Angeles Clippers. They are just 7-9 against teams with a record of .500 or better. The Sixers are an Eastern Conference best 18-3 at home and 21-6 overall against the East.

Tobias Harris and Ben Simmons have a tough task at-hand containing a player like Giannis. However, the Sixers being six and a half point dogs at home against the Bucks is laughable. The road to the finals runs through Philadelphia and the 76ers are playing tremendous team basketball with vicious defense.

I’m not scared of the Brooklyn Nets and I am certainly not scared of the Milwaukee Bucks.

Pick: 76ers +6.5 and/or 76ers +215

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Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY