Once again, the Philadelphia 76ers dominated the Atlanta Hawks across the board on their way to a 127-111 win, taking a 2-1 series lead. Despite bad foul calls and injuries, the Sixers persevered and put on a defensive clinic against the Hawks. Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons led the way on offense while Trae Young struggled until the game was already out of hand.

They often say that Philly fans are bad, but Atlanta was a disgrace. Not only once, but twice when Joel Embiid looked to go down with an injury, the crowd roared with cheers. Embarrassing behavior from the Hawks’ fans, but Joel made sure his presence felt afterward with a 27 point performance alongside nine rebounds and eight assists. Clint Capela tried to do everything on offense, but his over-the-top aggressiveness and lob-catching didn’t work against Embiid, shooting 3/8 from the floor.

Ben Simmons had a rough first half on the offensive side of the basketball. But after Doc Rivers had some words with him at halftime, he put on a show in the third quarter, turning up his play-style to an 11. Ben was driving to the basket like a man possessed, finishing the night with 18 points and seven assists. The Hawks tried to return to hack-a-Ben, but it didn’t work out that well with Simmons shooting 4-8 from the line. Overall the Sixers shot 64% from the line compared to Atlanta’s 84% with all three of their stars missing ten FTs total.

There was way too many injury scares for the Sixers during last night’s game, and it kept several fans on the edge of their seats. Joel Embiid took a few scary falls and at one point looked to have aggravated his knee but was just fine. Later, he took a nasty fall when combating Clint Capela but thankfully hopped right back up. Tobias Harris fell into a cameraman who had no common sense and a lack of an understanding of his surroundings. Instead of getting up or moving, he let Tobias take a nasty hit from the camera to his head but played through it.

Danny Green was not lucky enough to be spared from the injury gods. Early on, Green looked to hurt his ankle and was diagnosed quickly with a calf strain and ruled out for the remainder of the game. Later that night, he was seen in a boot, and Doc doubted his availability for Game Four. Hopefully, Green has a smooth recovery and is okay in time for the next round. 

The Sixers’ bench has done a complete 180 from the start of the playoffs, exploding for 48 points compared to Atlanta’s 32. Last night was the second game in a row where the Sixers’ backups played a significant role in their success, and everyone is hitting their stride at the perfect time. Philadelphia will get a much-needed two days of rest before returning to action in Atlanta for Game Four on Monday night.

Mandatory Credit: KSAT