3 observations after Maxey (45 points) hammers through slump, lifts Sixers to OT win

3 observations after Maxey (45 points) hammers through slump, lifts Sixers to OT win originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Sixers’ No. 0 saved the day and ensured his team did not stay stuck on zero wins.

Tyrese Maxey lifted the Sixers to a 118-114 overtime road victory Sunday over the Pacers, exploding for 45 points after starting 2 for 11 from the floor. Going into the game, he’d been shooting just 29.6 percent from the field and 19 percent from three-point range.

Caleb Martin had 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Sixers, who improved to 1-2 and will play the Pistons at home on Wednesday night. Andre Drummond recorded nine points and 17 rebounds.

The Sixers were still down Joel Embiid (left knee injury management) and Paul George (left knee bone bruise), which meant Maxey had to break through his early-season slump in heroic fashion.

Here are observations on the Sixers’ wild overtime win Sunday:

Much-needed hustle upgrade

The Sixers’ first few minutes did not suggest they’d flipped a switch.

On the team’s first possession, Myles Turner ripped the ball away from Andre Drummond in the post. Tyrese Haliburton’s second layup gave Indiana a 6-0 lead.

The Sixers had minimal offensive variety in the opening stages and didn’t put much pressure on the Pacers’ defense with drives into the paint. Maxey, Martin, Kyle Lowry and Kelly Oubre Jr. all missed their first attempt of the day from three-point range.

Eventually, Oubre and Martin started slashing aggressively and scoring inside. Martin has generally looked comfortable early this season initiating the Sixers’ offense in certain actions with Maxey off the ball. Eric Gordon added seven points off the bench Sunday in his first stint, too.

Compared to Friday night’s loss to the Raptors, the Sixers were strong in the hustle department. Guerschon Yabusele chased down a Gordon miss and dished to Maxey in the corner for a three that gave the Sixers a 23-16 edge.

Lowry drained a three with about 25 seconds left in the second quarter after Yabusele earned an extra possession by diving on the floor. KJ Martin beat Indiana to two offensive rebounds late in the first quarter and 6-foot-3 rookie Jared McCain snuck in for a put-back layup early in the second.

Overall, the Sixers grabbed 20 offensive boards to the Pacers’ seven.

Maxey hammers through slump

The Sixers played zone defense with Yabusele at center and their big men avoided the severe foul trouble that had tailed them in the team’s losses to Milwaukee and Toronto.

The Pacers’ offense still started humming in a 35-point second quarter. Maxey’s subpar decision-making and uncharacteristic giveaways helped Indiana build a lead as large as nine points late in the second.

In the first half, the 23-year-old point guard often looked like a player who’d started the season slowly and wasn’t sure exactly what would work. Andrew Nembhard defended Maxey tightly on the ball and Turner limited his clean looks at pull-up threes out of the pick-and-roll.

Maxey committed four first-half turnovers, doubling his total from the Sixers’ opening two games. At one point, he stared down Pascal Siakam at the top of the key, went to his left and coughed the ball up to T.J. McConnell. Later, he tossed a one-handed pass in the vicinity of McCain on the wing and it landed out of bounds.

Some of Maxey’s woes were simply narrow misses on shots he was right to take, including two open jumpers on the Sixers’ first play of the third quarter. He seemed to grow increasingly focused on breaking out of his slump, taking seven field goals in the first six minutes and change of the third quarter. None went in.

Still, Maxey drew four three throws early in the third period, didn’t lean solely on his jumper and recognized that the Sixers needed him to keep attacking. He finally got a driving lefty layup to drop, tying the game at 68-all and pumping his fist after Indiana called timeout.

That moment apparently snapped Maxey back into form. He converted a tough layup, nailed a pull-up three to extend the Sixers’ lead, and let out serious steam with a full-throated, chest-pounding celebration.

Sixers emerge from the late-game chaos

Indiana immediately erased its deficit with a 9-0 run right after the Sixers’ Maxey-fueled spurt.

McCain showed his youth against the always-pesky McConnell. The former Sixer absorbed a charge on McCain and then slipped past him for a driving layup.

Sixers head coach Nick Nurse understandably didn’t feel he could let Maxey rest for long. He came back in and scored a difficult lefty floater over Isaiah Jackson on the Sixers’ last play of the third quarter. Maxey, who entered the afternoon averaging 40 minutes per game, logged 48 against the Pacers.

With McConnell and Nembhard frequently hounding him in the backcourt, Maxey continued making crucial shots. He hit a baseline jumper, a step-back three and a catch-and-shoot triple off yet another Yabusele offensive board.

The end of regulation was packed with drama and officiating reviews. Nurse had a costly unsuccessful challenge of an out-of-bounds call when, upon review, the officials assessed Caleb Martin a foul under the NBA’s new proximate foul rule.

Shortly after that play, Nurse picked up a technical foul. Turner air balled a jumper and the officials stopped play to confirm the ball had not touched the rim before placing six seconds on the shot clock. Nurse was irate at how the sequence was handled. Haliburton missed the ensuing technical free throw.

The Sixers got several essential stops in a row and ultimately went ahead on a fast-break Caleb Martin layup. Drummond then made a clutch defensive play to strip the ball from Haliburton and two Maxey free throws grew the Sixers’ lead to 105-102.

Haliburton brought the ball up and the Sixers did not intentionally foul him on the floor. The two-time All-Star guard pump faked on Oubre and somehow sunk a leaning, off-balance three. Maxey’s full-court heave at the fourth-quarter buzzer came up short.

Thanks largely to Maxey, the Sixers shook off the disappointment of failing to secure the win in regulation. Maxey opened the scoring in overtime with a step-back three. He also had two massive lefty layups, including one where he speedily circled around an attempted Pacers blitz.

Again, the Sixers’ end-game execution was not at all textbook.

They opted to foul up three points this time, but their lead was down to two after Aaron Nesmith made both his free throws and Maxey split a pair. Caleb Martin then committed a big blunder, taking a foul on Haliburton with five seconds remaining.

Fortunately for the Sixers, Haliburton missed his first free throw. He intentionally missed his second, the Sixers grabbed the defensive rebound, and Maxey fittingly iced the game for good at the foul line.