Sixers stay on a roll with 94-89 win over Raptors
PHILADELPHIA -- Joel Embiid had 26 points and T.J. McConnell scored four critical points in a pivotal 7-0 run late in the game as the Philadelphia 76ers beat Toronto 94-89 on Wednesday night, ending a 14-game losing streak to the Raptors.
Ersan Ilyasova added 18 points for Philadelphia, which last beat Toronto on Jan. 18, 2013. The Sixers also won for the fifth time in six games and the seventh time in nine.
DeMar DeRozan had 25 points and Kyle Lowry added 24 for Toronto, which saw a four-game winning streak snapped. Jonas Valanciunas finished with 10 points and 16 rebounds.
The Sixers, who led most of the night, went up 81-74 on a 3-pointer by Dario Saric with 5:50 left. DeRozan crammed 10 of his 14 fourth-quarter points into the next 3:40, keying a 12-4 flurry.
DeRozan's final basket in that rush, a jumper from the right elbow, put Toronto up 86-85 with 1:53 remaining.
Embiid made a free throw to tie it, and after a DeRozan miss, McConnell took a pass from Robert Covington and converted a layup with 1:10 remaining to put the Sixers ahead for good.
McConnell, who finished with 10 points and eight assists, added two free throws with 35.2 seconds left. Embiid made two more with 20.7 seconds to play, giving the Sixers a 92-86 lead.
Embiid missed a practice Tuesday and a shootaround Wednesday because of illness but finished with nine rebounds and two blocked shots.
The Sixers opened an 18-8 lead at the beginning of the game behind seven points from Ilyasova and remained in front until a layup by reserve guard Fred VanVleet gave the Raptors a 37-36 advantage with 5:14 left in the second quarter.
Toronto eventually went up by four, but Philadelphia closed the half with a 10-4 flurry to take a 46-44 lead. Embiid scored six of his 13 first-half points during that run, all at the foul line.
Covington added all 10 of his points in the first 24 minutes. Lowry topped Toronto with 12, and Valanciunas had eight points and 11 rebounds.
The Raptors again surged in front early in the third quarter, and again the Sixers answered. Ilyasova had 10 points in the quarter, which ended with Philadelphia on top 68-65.
NOTES: Sixers coach Brett Brown said there is "no chance" of F Ben Simmons (fractured right foot) making his NBA debut Jan. 27 against Houston. There was speculation to that effect Tuesday, after Simmons posted two photos of himself doing on-court drills on Instagram. He did that shortly after the NBA announced that the game against the Rockets would be bumped to 8 p.m. and would be televised by ESPN instead of the Chicago-Miami game. ... Philadelphia G T.J. McConnell (wrist) and C/F Nerlens Noel (ankle) returned after sitting out the Monday victory in Milwaukee. ... Toronto C Lucas Nogueira did not play and is in the NBA's concussion protocol after taking a blow to the head in the first quarter Tuesday during a victory over the Nets. ... Raptors F Patrick Patterson missed his fourth consecutive game with a sore left knee.