PHILADELPHIA — The Sixers gathered for one final timeout, because nothing would come easy on this night.
Joel Embiid had overcome a slow start to notch a 36-point night. His team had flipped a 17-point hole into a 10-point advantage with less than three minutes to play. But a last-ditch outburst by young Sacramento Kings star Tyrese Haliburton — including an off-balance corner 3-pointer that cut the Sixers’ lead to two with 11.1 seconds to play and a five-second violation on the home team’s ensuing possession — put a Saturday night crowd that braved snowy conditions to be in attendance on high alert.
But Harrison Barnes’ last-second 3-pointer clanked off the side of the rim, and the Sixers survived, 103-101, at the Wells Fargo Center. The Sixers (30-19) have now won 14 of their past 17 games. Yet Saturday night was more of a struggle than many would have perceived entering the contest.
