MILWAUKEE — The 76ers were doomed by the Milwaukee Bucks’ three-point shooters.
The Sixers did just about everything possible to win Sunday afternoon’s game besides defend the three. The Bucks made 24 of 55 three-pointers in their 135-127 victory at Fiserv Forum.
All-Star point guard Damian Lillard made 8 of 15 three-pointers and finished with a game-high 43 points. Reserve guard Gary Trent Jr. added 23 points while making 7 of 15.
A lot of Milwaukee’s three-pointers came on wide-open looks. Some of them were incredible shots, but a disproportionate number were uncontested as the Sixers were slow on defensive rotations. That also contributed to Milwaukee grabbing 19 offensive rebounds.
“Two things, that’s one of them,” coach Nick Nurse said of the three-point shooting. “They obviously hit a super-high percentage. But they had a lot of good looks. A lot of them consecutive possessions. And then, the other one is the offensive rebounding.
“They just got a lot of second-chance opportunities. Some of those threes came off that. We just couldn’t rotate fast enough, and we couldn’t chase the ball down fast enough tonight for sure on multiple occasions.”
The Bucks (28-23) extended their series winning streak to seven games over the Sixers. And they did it without two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and Pat Connaughton, who missed the game with left calf strains.
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The outcome dropped the Sixers to 20-32. They’ve also lost three straight and five of their last six games.
Tyrese Maxey paced the Sixers with 39 points to go with four rebounds and five assists. Joel Embiid had 27 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists. Paul George added 12 points, six assists, five rebounds, and three steals.
This was only Embiid’s 16th game of the season and just the 12th time the Big Three of Embiid, Maxey, and George have played together.
A large portion of the games Embiid missed were attributed to left knee swelling. The 2023 NBA MVP had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee last February.
ESPN sideline reporter Lisa Salters said Embiid told her that he believes he’ll need to undergo another surgery on his left knee this offseason. According to the report, he thinks another surgery and a lengthy recovery period will help resolve the swelling.
Embiid was asked postgame if surgery will be necessary.
“There’s not much to say,” he said. “I think it’s just about when … I mean, the straightforward answer is when you got something that’s inconsistent, at some point we got to do something about it. We don’t know what it is. We are looking into every option.”
For now, he’s looking to help the Sixers turn this season around.
Embiid was off to a better start than Friday, when he struggled in the first quarter. He made his first three baskets to score seven of the Sixers’ first nine points.
The seven-time All-Star had 15 points by the time he was subbed out with 4 minutes, 24 seconds remaining in the quarter and the Sixers up, 27-20. Embiid made 5 of 6 shots, while Maxey had 10 points at the time on 4-for-5 shooting.
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With Embiid on the bench, Maxey scored 10 of his team’s next 12 points to give the Sixers a 39-38 lead with three seconds left. With 20 points and two assists, Maxey accounted for 66.7% of the team’s first-quarter points. He and Embiid accounted for all but four of their team’s points.
The Sixers opened the second quarter with a lineup of Quentin Grimes, Justin Edwards, Embiid, Kyle Lowry, and Jared Butler. That didn’t go well, and the Bucks took a seven-point lead. The Sixers got back into the game after George, Maxey, and Kelly Oubre Jr. reentered, replacing Grimes, Lowry, and Butler.
As they did to end the first quarter, the Bucks scored a go-ahead basket right before the halftime buzzer. This time, Trent’s three-pointer gave Milwaukee a 65-63 advantage.
Maxey (26) and Embiid (24) combined to score 50 points while attempting 27 of the Sixers’ 43 first-half shots.
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The Sixers had a balanced attack in the third quarter. But the Bucks outscored them, 38-28, and took a 103-91 cushion into the fourth quarter. Milwaukee built a 25-point lead in the fourth quarter before the Sixers pulled within eight points late.
Up next
The Sixers will host the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday at the Wells Fargo Center. The Raptors (16-37) are riding a four-game losing streak. The Raptors defeated the Sixers, 115-107, on Oct. 25 in Toronto.