.-') _ .-') _
( OO ) ) ( OO ) )
.-----. ,--./ ,--,' ,--./ ,--,'
' .--./ | \ | |\ | \ | |\
| |('-. | \| | )| \| | )
/_) |OO )| . |/ | . |/
|| |`-'| | |\ | | |\ |
(_' '--'\ | | \ | | | \ |
`-----' `--' `--' `--' `--'
lite.cnn.com - on gopher - inofficial
ARTICLE VIEW:
Philadelphia 76ers silence boos from home crowd to edge past Miami Heat
and reach playoffs
By Matias Grez, CNN
Updated:
6:30 AM EDT, Thu April 18, 2024
Source: CNN
The had to overcome some early boos from their own fans as they edged
past the Miami Heat, 105-104, to clinch the No. 7 seed in the Eastern
Conference and book a .
Some sloppy play early on helped the Heat open up a 14-point lead near
the end of the first half of the Play-In Tournament game, with the home
fans making their displeasure known as the 76ers continued to give up
cheap turnovers.
However, after struggling for three quarters, came up big down the
stretch, scoring 11 of his 23 total points in the fourth and helping
the Sixers secure the comeback.
Embiid, the reigning league MVP, also added 15 rebounds and five
assists, but the Sixers were kept in the game by veteran Frenchman
Nicolas Batum, who had 20 points – including six three pointers –
off the bench.
“It means a lot,” Embiid said of reaching the playoffs, per .
“Being down a lot … we stuck together. It shows you that I don’t
play my best, I don’t get to my spots the whole game until the fourth
quarter and we still found a way to win.
“They like to make it nasty and we can do it, too, and we made it
nasty, too.”
The 76ers were flying high in the Eastern Conference until Embiid back
in February, with the team’s record falling off a cliff in the big
man’s absence.
He returned to the court at the beginning of April after eight weeks
out and the 76ers now boast a 32-8 record this season with Embiid on
the floor.
However, after another unconvincing postseason performance, questions
will likely continue to be asked about Philly’s championship
aspirations with Embiid previously never making it past the conference
semifinals.
Bigger problems for the Heat
On top of the Play-In defeat, the Miami Heat could now be without
talisman Jimmy Butler who suffered an apparent knee injury during
Wednesday’s contest.
Butler stayed down clutching his knee after a hard landing at the end
of the first quarter, with Kelly Oubre Jr. also falling on top of him.
He managed to finish the remainder of the game but was clearly hampered
as he scored 19 points on just 27.8% shooting.
“I fell, he landed and my knee just didn’t do well, I guess,”
Butler said, per . “I don’t know. It’s not a good feeling, I can
tell you that.
“It felt like I couldn’t do too much, which sucks with the timing
of the game and everything. I hope that I’m fine. I hope that I wake
up tomorrow and can still stick-and-move. Right now, I can’t say
that’s the case.”
Butler said he will undergo an MRI on Thursday, but reports from the
Athletic and ESPN say the Heat are fearful he has an MCL injury.
It is now déjà vu for the Heat who, as they did last season, find
themselves in an elimination Play-In game to try and secure the No. 8
seed.
The Heat will face the Chicago Bulls, who beat the Atlanta Hawks in
Wednesday’s other play-in game, for a chance to face the overall No.
1 seeded Boston Celtics in the playoffs.
DIR <- back to index