Even with a two day break, the Sixers still looked drained on the court tonight, losing in a low-scoring effort against the Pelicans 101-94. Philly trailed for most of the second half and nearly brought the game back, trailing by six in the final minutes. Despite that, Zion Williamson closed it for New Orleans, having over 37 points on 53% shooting.

For the Sixers, nobody could buy a bucket the entire night. Tobias Harris led the Sixers in scoring with 23 points, and no other Sixers’ player scored above 15 points. Joel Embiid might’ve had his worst game all season with just 14 points on a measly 5/16 from the field. It looked like either his knee or the brace Joel was wearing was bothering him, often grabbing it during the game. Alongside that, most of his offense came from the mid-range, rarely posting up unless necessary.

Philly’s lack of depth reared its ugly head tonight. For a good portion of the game, Doc Rivers was forced to put Mike Scott on Zion Williamson, which was disastrous to watch. Unless things change with the buyout market soon, this could be a glaring problem over the next few months. Looking at the rest of the bench, Furkan Korkmaz carried the team from deep with four threes. George Hill needs to recover quickly because his presence is greatly wanted off the bench.

Seth Curry was abysmal tonight and provided almost nothing for the Sixers. He finished the night with a whopping zero points on 0/7 shooting. Tonight was Seth’s third straight game under 10 points and fifth since he returned from injury. Not having his offensive skillset tonight hindered Philly on that side of the court.

The Sixers now sit at 35-17 and are one game behind the Brooklyn Nets for first place in the Eastern Conference. New Orleans is currently 23-29 and remains outside the playoff picture in the West. Philly continues their road trip tomorrow night facing the Oklahoma City Thunder. The 76ers have one of their most brutal stretches of the season going forward and will need everyone in full gear to continue their playoff push.

Mandatory Credit: USA Today