PHILADELPHIA — Pascal Siakam’s pull-up three-pointer bounced off the rim, and P.J. Tucker chest-bumped teammate Tobias Harris under the basket.
That misfire — combined with a go-ahead three-pointer by Harris — secured the 76ers’ 104-101 overtime victory over the Toronto Raptors on Monday night at the Wells Fargo Center to remain perfect on their longest homestand of the season.
Harris’ long ball gave the Sixers a 104-101 lead with about two minutes to play in the extra period — and held until the final buzzer. Siakam’s final miss came after his free throw and scooping layup with 5.1 seconds remaining in regulation, before Joel Embiid’s missed jumper at the buzzer sent the game to overtime knotted at 99.
The Sixers overcame a poor shooting start — and a fourth-quarter drought — to win their fifth consecutive game, while the Raptors dropped their sixth game in a row. But the Raptors were pesky throughout, rallying every time the Sixers built a double-digit lead in each of the first three quarters and leading by as many as seven points in the final frame.
Then it was the Sixers’ turn to storm back.
After an OG Anunoby jumper gave Toronto a 96-89 lead with about four minutes to play, three-pointers by Harris and De’Anthony Melton sparked a 10-0 run to give the Sixers a 99-96 lead with less than two minutes to go. They did not score again, while Siakam trimmed the deficit.
A Siakam pull-up three-pointer right before the third-quarter buzzer also sent the game to the final period tied at 78, before a three-pointer by Chris Boucher capped an 8-1 run to begin the fourth to seize an 86-79 advantage for Toronto.
Siakam led all scorers with 38 points and added 15 rebounds and six assists. Embiid finished with 28 points, 11 rebounds and four assists, while Harris totaled 21 points and James Harden added 14 points on 5-of-14 shooting, seven rebounds and eight assists.
The Sixers will conclude this seven-game homestand with matchups against the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday and Los Angeles Clippers on Friday, before a marquee Christmas Day game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
Harris’ efficient return
After missing Friday’s win against the Golden State Warriors with back pain, Harris was the Sixers’ most efficient offensive player even before his crucial final three-pointer. He went 7-of-9 from the floor, including 5-of-7 from three-point range.
His night included a corner three-pointer that cut the Raptors’ lead to 96-92 and a key rebound that set up Embiid’s go-ahead free throws with about two minutes to play. After his tie-breaking overtime three-pointer, it looked like he had put the game out of reach on the Sixers’ next possession, but what appeared to be a four-point opportunity was instead called an offensive foul on P.J. Tucker after an officials’ review.
While the rest of his team went 3-of-16 from the floor in the first quarter, Harris went 3-of-3 (and 2-of-2 from the free-throw line) to finish with 10 points.
Then in the third quarter, Harris hit an early corner three-pointer, and later, a tough turnaround jumper that pushed the Sixers’ advantage back to 76-67.
Bench’s first-half burst
After the Sixers let an 11-point first-quarter lead slip, their all-bench lineup pushed that advantage back up to a comfortable margin.
Contributions came from everywhere. Matisse Thybulle and Danuel House Jr. opened the quarter with three-pointers. Then Montrezl Harrell finished inside, and Shake Milton followed with a reverse layup. Later, House converted a layup through contact and a step-back three in the corner, and Harrell rattled the rim on a monster dunk.
In all, the Sixers scored 25 bench points before the break. But that could not be replicated in the second half, when that group accounted for only three points.
Coach Doc Rivers briefly turned to the same lineup at the end of the third quarter, with the Sixers clinging to a 78-74 lead. But after Toronto swiftly trimmed that deficit, Harden began the fourth quarter with Milton, House, Georges Niang, and Harrell.
Bo Cruz sighting
Juancho Hernangomez, who starred in the movie Hustle that was filmed in Philly and featured multiple Sixers players, started for the Raptors on Monday and totaled seven points on 3-of-4 shooting.
Hernangomez hit one of the game’s bigger shots, a corner three-pointer with about nine minutes to play that put Toronto up, 83-79.
Before the game, he gathered a midcourt photo with Harris and Thybulle, who were both in the movie.
