2025-26 Sixers Bell Ringer standings:
Tyrese Maxey - 7
VJ Edgecombe - 2
Andre Drummond - 2
Dom Barlow - 1
Adem Bona - 1
Justin Edwards - 1
Quentin Grimes - 1
Jared McCain - 1
Kelly Oubre Jr - 1
Trendon Watford - 1
15th roster spot - 1
Your 10-8 Philadelphia 76ers welcomed Eastern Conference foe the Atlanta Hawks to Xfinity Mobile Arena on Sunday night. The Sixers entered this contest sitting in eighth place in the East. This would be the first meeting of four between the two teams this season. The Sixers welcomed Joel Embiid and VJ Edgecombe back to the lineup, marking the first time this season the Sixers had their Big 3 of Tyrese Maxey, Embiid and Paul George on the floor.
Let’s get to the game.
The first quarter was hotly contested, which would become a theme for the first half as a whole. The Sixers and Hawks traded baskets and mini-runs throughout. Balanced scoring from Maxey, Embiid and Quentin Grimes paced the Sixers to an early 29-25 lead at the end of period one.
The Hawks punched back to win the second quarter by a 32-29 margin cutting the Sixers halftime lead to just one at 58-57. The Hawks were carried by stellar play from their rising star forward Jalen Johnson, who led all scorers with 16 first-half points. Eleven points off the bench courtesy of Mouhamed Gueye helped lead the way for the Hawks as well.
Both teams failed to get any notable separation from each other throughout the third. A sweet step-back three from Grimes at the horn of the third quarter gave the Sixers an 89-83 lead headed into the fourth quarter. Grimes scored 11 points in the period and would take a game-high 23 points into the final period.
The Hawks jumped all over the Sixers to start the fourth. Atlanta started the period on an 18-4 run to take an eight-point lead at 101-93 with under six minutes to go. The Sixers appeared they would not be able to overcome that slow start. A George missed layup, a Grimes missed dunk, and a pair of missed George open corner three-pointers appeared to be the nail in the coffin for the Sixers. They were down 113-105 with just 43 seconds remaining in the contest when the comeback began with a Grimes three.
Sandwiched between two 1-of-2 trips from the line from Johnson and Dyson Daniels was an Embiid layup. Dominick Barlow was fouled with 12 seconds left and had an and-1 opportunity to cut the lead to just two points. Barlow missed the free throw, but Paul George was able to corral the rebound and fire it to Tyrese Maxey who drilled a long range three to tie the game at 115-115. OVERTIME!
Big baskets by Grimes, Maxey and Jared McCain gave the Sixers the advantage for most of the overtime period. A missed pair of free throws from Maxey with 4.6 seconds on the clock with a two-point lead left the door cracked for the Hawks. Johnson drew a shooting foul on Barlow with 0.3 seconds left on the clock. Johnson knocked down the pair to tie the game at 126 apiece and force a second overtime.
The Hawks took complete control as George and Embiid were unavailable due to minutes restriction. The Hawks would go onto win 142-134 behind a 41-point performance from Johnson.
Now for the Bell Ringer.
Tyrese Maxey: 44 points, 9 assists, 7 rebounds, 14-of-31 from field, 52 minutes played
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Maxey just continues to stack monster performance after monster performance, carrying the Sixers on his back this season. Aside from missing a pair of free throws that would have iced the game at the end of the first overtime, Maxey was excellent. He was dominant scoring inside the arc with acrobatic layups and playing with tremendous pace. Maxey has been an ironman all season for the Sixers, ranking at the top of the NBA in minutes played.
Quentin Grimes: 28 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 8-of-15 from field, 4-of-8 from three, 47 minutes played
NBAE via Getty Images
Grimes is making a strong Sixth Man of the Year case this season for the Sixers. He continues to display three-level scoring and sound man-to-man defense on the perimeter. Grimes efforts on the boards should not go unnoticed as well as he notched a double-digit rebounding performance.