PHILADELPHIA – Tobias Harris of Long Island was furious when he was not selected for the NBA All-Star game after helping the Sixers to set the best record in the Eastern Conference.
Harris certainly seemed to have a strong case on Tuesday night. For one night, he cashed on his hometown team, who were desperate for the offensive firepower that Harris provided the Sixers.
Harris hit two buckets on the straight as the Knicks cooled, scoring just 14 points in the fourth period, and Philadelphia escaped with a 99-96 defense-oriented victory at the Wells Fargo Center.
This was only the second game of the season that the arena received fans during this pandemic season – 3,100 players.
Although there were a handful of Knicks T-shirts in the stands, it was a crowd from Philadelphia who watched these new Knicks clash and cling, but failed to make any sustained strokes at the end of the fourth period.
Harris finished with 30 points out of 11 out of 20 shots to take the Sixers to their sixth consecutive victory, while the team continues to win despite the absence of MVP candidate Joel Embiid.
Julius Randle finished with 19 points from just 7 of 19 shots. Alec Burks, a former Sixer, missed a shot in the final minute and made a comeback. He finished with 19 points, but hit 6 out of 15.
Losing by three, Immanuel Quickley caught a 3-point basket with 12 seconds remaining. The Knicks recovered and Reggie Bullock fired a 3-point basket, but he was off the field.
RJ Barrett, who also lost the clutch baskets late, finished with 17 points, but hit just 7 out of 17, while the Knicks dropped to 20-21, losing the straight to the Nets and Sixers.
The Knicks are suffering at the point guard without Elfrid Payton and Derrick Rose. Quickley looked uncomfortable with a groin sprain, but he added 13 points. Frank Ntilikina, as good a defender as he was again, was goalless for the third straight game, going 0 to 4.
The tie was 41-41 when the Knicks left in a 7-0 run to advance 48-41.
Barrett hit Nerlens Noel in an alley to start the race. Bullock, who turned 30 on Tuesday, took a 3-point note from Sixers turnover. Barrett crowned the race after another comeback in Philadelphia. Burks led Barrett, who ran to the center of the court for an unchallenged left-handed congestion.
The Knicks kept the 56-48 lead at halftime with Randle, out of his post-buzzer tantrum in Brooklyn, drained a 3-point basket in the first ball possession of the game and ended up with 13 points and four assists in the break.