Instant Observations: 76ers Battle Before Ultimately Falling Short Against Bucks

The shorthanded Philadelphia 76ers (36-30) held the lead against the Milwaukee Bucks (43-24) for most of this contest before running out of gas late. They ultimately fell to Milwaukee 114-105 on Thursday night at Fiserv Forum.

Tyrese Maxey finished with 30 points, four rebounds and four assists. Tobias Harris added 15 points, four rebounds and three assists. Cam Payne scored 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting off the bench.

Joel Embiid (left knee meniscus procedure), De’Anthony Melton (lumbar spine bone stress) and Robert Covington (left knee bone bruise) remained out of the lineup for the Sixers.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 32 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. Brook Lopez totaled 19 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two blocks. Damian Lillard finished with 17 points and nine assists. The Bucks were without Khris Middleton (left ankle sprain), Malik Beasley (back spasms) and MarJon Beauchamp (back spasms).

The Sixers next take on the Charlotte Hornets at the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday night. Here are some instant observations from the hard fought loss to the Bucks:

Likes:

– The Sixers were coming off two brutal offensive performances against the New York Knicks. Maxey made it his mission to carry the offense, and it was clear right from the opening tip he had the hot hand. He set the tone early, knocking down a pair of 3-pointers in the Sixers’ opening two possessions. That was just the beginning for Maxey, who finished the first quarter with 10 points. The 23-year old was unstoppable, scoring through a mixture of 3-pointers and impressive finishes from around the basket. He led the Sixers with 18 points at halftime, including draining this jumper with multiple defenders closing in on him.

That was the 20th half of Tyrese Maxey’s career where he made at least 4 threes, per @Stathead. pic.twitter.com/OKz5fAYoQH

— Daniel Olinger (@dan_olinger) March 15, 2024

After lighting it up from deep in the first half, Maxey transitioned to slicing up the Bucks defense on drives to the basket. He put on a clinic in the third quarter, making multiple circus shots through the tough Milwaukee defense. The shot he made over Pat Connaughton while hanging in the air and jumping off the wrong foot was incredible.

2️⃣7️⃣ FOR TYRESE. pic.twitter.com/gQalXOdQsk

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) March 15, 2024

Maxey carved up Milwaukee’s defense for much of the night. His production would have been greater if he received any sort of whistle from the referees. He was fouled on multiple drives to the basket, only to come away in frustration after not getting the call. Anyone who was watching the game would be shocked to see that Maxey took just three free throws.

After putting together a tremendous performance through three quarters, Maxey proceeded to run out of gas in the final quarter. The difficult shots that were falling earlier in the contest stopped going in. Despite his struggles in the final frame, he still had a good showing overall. He finished with 30 or more points for the 17th time this season.

– Paul Reed is in the midst of his best stretch on the court this season, if not his entire career. He is a defensive menace, making plays all over the floor. He made a pair of blocks in the first half, one of which came on a Pat Beverley layup attempt. Reed also played a large role in the Sixers’ aggressive defense against Antetokounmpo, whether one-on-one or through timely double teams. Their defensive strategy worked in the first half, forcing a ton of Antetokounmpo turnovers. However, a player of that caliber can only be held down for so long, especially when the refs let him get away with multiple clear travels.

On another note, Reed’s outside shooting has improved to the point where he should feel more comfortable taking shots from long distance. Over his last 13 games, Reed is shooting 9 of 15 from 3-point range. If he can continue to make them at or near that efficiency, Reed should start making the 3-pointer more of a feature of his offensive arsenal.

– Payne provided a nice scoring punch off the bench against the Bucks, his former team. He had the hot hand immediately upon checking into the game, knocking down a trio of 3-pointers. In addition to the outside shooting, Payne also had it going from inside the arc. He made a couple of tough baskets, including a running floater that went high off the glass. Between his outside shooting and abilities as a creator, Payne brings a valuable skillset to this Sixers roster.

Dislikes:

– Harris’ play over the last couple weeks has not been pretty to watch. His recent struggles carried over into this game, making him a non-factor for most of the contest. For a large portion of the game, Harris failed to produce in any major way. Even when he was faced with an enticing mismatch, he either failed to take advantage or did not even make much of an effort to do so. When he is playing like that, the Sixers need to spend far fewer possessions trying to get him involved.

While Harris was a non-factor through three quarters of play, he did begin to find a rhythm in the fourth quarter. He made a couple of mid-range jumpers on his way to scoring nine points in the final frame. While his hot fourth quarter was ultimately not enough to get the win, it ideally will be something he builds off of to break out of his slump. He also did appear to turn his ankle late in the game, but he stayed in the contest.

– After having a great last couple games, Kelly Oubre Jr. came crashing down to earth against the Bucks. Driving to the basket has been a major part of his game in recent weeks, but Milwaukee did a good job defending him at the rim. He also went ice cold from 3-point range, missing all four of his attempts. Oubre finished this game with nine points on 4-of-13 shooting to go with four rebounds.