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Joel Embiid and Dario Saric lead 76ers over Heat in Game 3

By Matt Cianfrone

MIAMI, FL - APRIL 19: Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers warms up before the game against the Miami Heat in Game Three of Round One of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on April 19, 2018 at American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
MIAMI, FL - APRIL 19: Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers warms up before the game against the Miami Heat in Game Three of Round One of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on April 19, 2018 at American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Joel Embiid took over late in the fourth quarter and the Philadelphia 76ers were able to hold off the Miami Heat in a fantastic, physical battle to take a 2-1 series lead.

It wasn’t hard to predict that Joel Embiid returning would help the Philadelphia 76ers. But considering that he hadn’t taken the floor in about a month, exactly how much he would help remained a big question. As it turns out, the answer was a whole lot, as Embiid finished with 23 points, seven rebounds and three blocks including a five-point burst late in the fourth quarter to help the 76ers pull away from the Heat and take a 2-1 series lead.

For much of the night, the game was a back-and-forth affair as each team answered the other run for run. In fact, entering the fourth quarter the 76ers led just 96-94 despite 45 fouls combined being called in the first three periods. Miami was able to hang around thanks primarily to the play of Goran Dragic and Justise Winslow, who combined for 42 points through three quarters.

But a 9-1 run to start the quarter gave Philadelphia a bit of breathing room and Embiid slammed the door shut late in the quarter by hitting two contested shots on back-to-back possessions. First Embiid banked in a foul line jumper as the shot clock expired, before following it up on the next possession with a left-wing 3-pointer over James Johnson which combined with a dominant defensive effort in the quarter gave the Sixers a very important road victory.

Takeaways:

Embiid is a problem: While he clearly wasn’t 100 percent back to normal in his return from a broken face, Embiid was dominant on both ends of the floor at different moments in the game. His defensive impact was apparent early and often, as the Heat struggled to finish over his verticality contests. Even when he wasn’t credited with blocked shots, Embiid changed countless Miami layups and made them come up short of the rim. While the 76ers were already good defensively, it was clear that having Embiid on the back line of the defense made a difference. Philadelphia’s perimeter defenders were able to gamble a bit more knowing they had dominant rim protection and it led to 15 Heat turnovers.

On offense, things were a bit more of a mixed bag. Embiid clearly struggled to see at times in his mask, which resulted in quite a few fumbled passes. Embiid finished just 5-11 from the field, but reached the free throw line 15 times and knocked down three 3-pointers to boost his efficiency. Most importantly, and as expected, Embiid played with his usual confidence, talking plenty of trash all night long. Considering Embiid will only get better conditioned as he plays more, Eastern Conference opponents should be terrified after the first glimpse of playoff Embiid.

The Homie showed out: Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid deservedly get most of the hype for the 76ers, but Dario Saric has been incredible all series long. That continued in Game 3 as Saric went off for 21 points including four 3-pointers to back the Sixer stars. Saric seemed to find the bottom of the net with a big 3-pointer when the Heat made a run, keeping the game close until the fourth. While Marco Belinelli’s circus shots will eventually stop falling, nothing Saric has done has felt unsustainable. Philadelphia will always have two great creators in Embiid and Simmons, but if Saric is going to finish plays the way he has in this series, the Sixers offense is going to be devastating, especially because of his size.

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Justise is served: Winslow’s Game 3 performance is a perfect example of the problems with single game plus/minus. Winslow was incredible all night long for Miami but finished as a minus 27 in 27 minutes for the Heat. When the 76ers left him open from behind the 3-point line early, Winslow buried three first-half 3s. When they started to close out a bit more, Winslow got to the foul line for eight free throw attempts. Winslow also added great defense on plenty of different 76ers, including a big-time block on Embiid in transition late in the fourth before the game got away from Miami. The Heat don’t have the star power the 76ers do, so Winslow will need to continue to play well if Miami wants to win the series. If he continues to play like he did in Game 3, they will have a shot and also a player who could be heading towards stardom. And considering the terrible body language of Hassan Whiteside in Game 3, they really might need that.

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