3 observations after Sixers narrowly fail in 4th quarter comeback against Magic – NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Sixers came close to going 2-0 in a row on Wednesday night.

They suffered a 106-102 loss to the Magic at Wells Fargo Center and were 5-15 on the season.

Jared McCain was the Sixers’ leading scorer with 24 points on 10-for-17 shooting. Tyrese Maxey scored 16 points on 7-for-19 shooting and six assists.

Franz Wagner starred for the 16-8 Magic with 35 points.

The Sixers were without Joel Embiid (managing a left knee injury), Paul George (recovering from a left knee injury), Kyle Lowry (recovering from a right hip injury) and Andre Drummond (right ankle sprain).

Orlando’s Paolo Banchero and Gary Harris were sidelined due to injuries.

Sixers head coach Nick Nurse said before the game that he believed there was “a chance” Embiid would play Friday night when the Sixers face the Magic again. According to Nurse, Embiid completed an on-court workout on Wednesday and plans to do the same on Thursday.

Here are observations about the Sixers’ loss on Wednesday:

Hard sledding for Bona

The Sixers started a Maxey McCain backcourt with Kelly Oubre Jr., KJ Martin and Guerschon Yabusele.

This unit seemed ready to start on defense. Oubre stole the ball from Wagner about halfway down the court, which led to a quick layup from Maxey. The Sixers held Orlando scoreless until the 9:23 mark of the first quarter and took a 6-0 lead. Yabusele scored seven quick points and made his first four field goals after a poor shooting night in the Sixers’ win over the Hornets on Tuesday.

The nurse brought Adem Bona next to Yabusele about five minutes into the evening. The rookie made an impressive move shortly after coming on, scoring an offensive rebound after a missed free throw from Oubre. That led to a Caleb Martin and a basket. Bona’s hustle and bounce have been highlighted since Drummond’s injury.

Bona had a difficult matchup against Moe Wagner, who has been one of the NBA’s most productive backup centers this season, and struggled in his first stint. The UCLA product picked up two early fouls and was denied on a bold dunk attempt over Jonathan Isaac. Orlando went on a sustained run and took a 15-point lead in less than 13 minutes when Isaac made a corner three.

The nurse said after the game that Bona had a knee problem.

“He obviously wasn’t moving very well out there,” Nurse said, “which limited him…that’s kind of why we took him out there (late in the third quarter). We’ll have more on that for you later.”

McCain gets Sixers back on track

Because of the Magic’s size, the Sixers had to play Bona for a few minutes. For the most part, the Sixers were shorter at every single position.

The zone defense was an effective and sensible Plan B, especially considering Orlando is a decidedly below-average three-point shooting team.

McCain led a 10-0 Sixers spurt early in the second quarter, making some nifty finger rolls and assisting on a KJ Martin layup and Oubre three-pointer. The 20-year-old had an outstanding performance in the second period, scoring 11 points and regularly causing problems for the Magic with subtle changes of pace on his drives.

As a team, the Sixers finished the second quarter strong. McCain knocked down an offensive rebound and Yabusele threw a nifty dunk to Oubre. Maxey’s layup with 11.6 seconds left in the first half tied the score at 53.

The Sixers also scored their first six points in the third quarter. Oubre, who had a season-high five assists and had another good game on both ends, drove and found KJ Martin in the dunker spot. He slammed it home.

Lots of frustration, missed jumps for Maxey

McCain committed two turnovers early in the third quarter and, in a rare instance, missed two consecutive free throws.

The Sixers shot 11 for 19 (57.9 percent) overall at the foul line, something they couldn’t afford against the current No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference.

“Tough stuff, man,” the nurse said. “In a game like this you don’t have as much room for error. If you want to win, you can’t give away so many points.”

McCain clearly didn’t let his hiccups early in the third quarter bother him and rebounded with two tricky finishes. On the Sixers’ final possession of the third, he made a slick pump fake and then netted a three-pointer right in front of the Magic bench, tying the contest at 77 apiece.

After a poor shooting streak in three games – 12 for 41 from the field, 2 for 21 from three-point range – McCain has returned to top form in the last two games.

“I think the worst thing you can do is change something — change something,” he said. “I work too hard on that jump shot. There’s no way I’m going to change anything about my routine. It’s just that sometimes the shots don’t come in. That’s just how it is. They are the best defenders in the world, the best players in the world.

“They’re going to guard you differently every game, so I think we’ll just get used to it, know what they’re going to do and take the shots with confidence. Every game will be different. The shot won’t (always) fall, but you have to influence the game in other ways.”

Meanwhile, Maxey was having a tough time and seemed aware that he had no free throw attempts until the 1:21 mark of the fourth quarter. During a timeout in the third quarter, the All-Star guard had an animated conversation with an official.

In general, Maxey’s evening lacked friendly games. Late in the third quarter, he saw an open three-pointer go in and out. In the Sixers’ duel against Detroit and Orlando, Maxey shot 1 for 14 from distance.

It’s down to 30.5 percent this season. Some of this dip in outside shooting early in the season can be attributed to Maxey having to force more difficult jumpers in short-handed situations, but it’s still disappointing. He expects to improve as the season progresses.

Franz Wagner was aggressive all night long and delivered several timely throws in the second half. His isolated shots helped the Magic take a narrow lead early in the fourth quarter. Orlando was also a constant threat on offense. Jalen Suggs’ attack on Maxey extended the Magic’s lead to 97-87.

The Sixers were still hanging around. Seconds after Suggs’ entry, McCain practiced a pull-up three-pointer.

Ricky Council IV finished the game and played a key role in the Sixers’ spirited comeback with his physical attacking style. However, just under a minute before the end, he missed the third corner attempt that would have equalized the game.

The Sixers trailed 103-100 with 8.0 seconds left. Maxey received the ball on the away sideline, but his running three-point attempt bounced off the front edge. Nurse was angry that no foul was called on the play.

“He broke the gap a little bit and their secondary defender hit him in the arm,” Nurse said. “That’s what the video (replay) showed. It should have been three free throws. So it would have been a great piece, right?”