The Philadelphia 76ers Fall to the Indiana Pacers as the Magic Number Remains at One

The Philadelphia 76ers lost to the Indiana Pacers in a close battle last night by a final score of 103-94. The team was looking to go out and officially clinch the one seed, but couldn’t get the job done against a scrappy Pacers team.

Ben Simmons came out hot to start the game, tallying 14 points and shooting 6-for-10 from the field in his first 16 minutes. Tobias Harris would also have a solid start to his night, giving the Sixers 14 early points, shooting 6-for-10 from the field as well. The two stars would have a great first half, including this beautiful fadeaway jumper from Ben.

Tyrese Maxey has been playing all around great basketball lately, potentially solidifying his role in the playoff rotation, with eight early points off the bench in the first half. The Sixers would head into half leading 62-51, while tearing up both sides of the court.

The Sixers came out flat in the third quarter, getting outscored 24-13 in twelve minutes of basketball. The Pacers took a three point lead halfway through the third, thanks to scoring from Doug McDermott and Damontas Sabonis. The third quarter ended with the game tied.

The Pacers gave the Sixers a battle in the fourth quarter, and carried the momentum all the way til the final buzzer. Ben Simmons got into some foul trouble and was forced to play a more “contained” version of basketball with five founds. Caris LeVert hit a game sealing three with under a minute left putting Indiana up seven, and the Sixers failed to climb out of the late hole.

The Sixers fell to the Indiana Pacers last night, as they will look to clinch the one seed on Thursday. The team will travel to Miami to take on the Heat in their last road game of the season.

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Final Stats
Tobias Harris	27 PTS	5 REB	3 AST	11/24 FG
Ben Simmons	20 PTS	8 REB	7 AST	9/16 FG
Damontas Sabonis	16 PTS	13 REB	15 AST	7/9 FG
Caris LeVert	24 PTS	7 REB	5 AST	8/20 FG

Mandatory Credit: USA Today Sports