The 76ers and Miami Heat enter their Monday meeting in Philadelphia with identical 37-30 records, as the Eastern Conference playoff picture continues to take shape.
The Heat currently hold the tiebreaker for the seventh seed in the East as a result of a 2-0 lead in the regular season series, with the wins taking place on Christmas (119-113) and Valentine’s Day (109-104). Following Monday’s contest, the series will conclude on April 4 in Florida.
“I know it's that close, I know that,” Philadelphia’s Nico Batum said Sunday. “We've just got to focus on one game at a time. I know it's cliché, but it's pretty much true right now. It's a big game against an Eastern Conference rival. We just have to go out there and win… They need that game as well, so it's going to be a big fight.”
Tyrese Maxey scored a game-high 30 points for the Sixers in the most recent showdown between the two teams, while teammates Buddy Hield (22 points, 10 assists) and Paul Reed (18 points, 12 rebounds) each notched a double-double. That Feb. 14 game featured 21 lead changes and 15 ties.
During the home win on Christmas night, Heat rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. posted 31 points and 10 rebounds in 39:29 of action - all of which remain career-high totals.
The Sixers are coming off a 109-98 home victory over Charlotte on Saturday. Maxey led all scorers with another 30-point game.
“I think guys did a good job of getting back to what they do best,” Maxey said postgame. “And when we do that, I think we’re pretty good.”
Philadelphia is 13-0 this season when holding their opponent to fewer than 100 points.
Later this week, the Sixers embark on a four-game road trip that visits Phoenix, Los Angeles (Lakers and Clippers), and Sacramento between Wednesday and Monday.
OPPONENT OUTLOOK
The Heat (37-30) will face the second half of a back-to-back in Philadelphia, after narrowly defeating the Pistons, 104-101, Sunday in Detroit. Bam Adebayo (20 points, game-high 17 rebounds) made a buzzer-beating 3-pointer for Miami.
Duncan Robinson scored a game-high 30 points, while shooting 7-for-12 from beyond the arc. Robinson became the fastest player to reach 1,000 career 3-pointers in NBA history at 343 games, surpassing now-76er Buddy Hield who did so in 350 games.
Jimmy Butler (21.4 ppg), Tyler Herro (20.8 ppg), and Adebayo (19.9 ppg) lead the Heat in scoring, but Butler and Herro did not play Sunday.
76ERS-HEAT INJURY REPORT
Miami last played without Jimmy Butler (right foot contusion), Tyler Herro (right foot medial tendinitis), Kevin Love (right heel bruise), Nikola Jovic (right hamstring strain), and Josh Richardson (right shoulder surgery).
Joel Embiid (left knee meniscus procedure), Robert Covington (left knee bone bruise), and De’Anthony Melton (back, lumbar spine bone stress) remain out Monday. Tobias Harris (right ankle sprain) is questionable.
SATURDAY’S TOP PERFORMANCES
Tyrese Maxey
- Maxey dropped his 30 points (8-20 fg, 3-9 3fg, 11-12 ft) in 40 minutes of play.
Kelly Oubre Jr.
- Oubre Jr. scored 17 of his 22 points (8-16 fg, 1-5 3fg, 5-5 ft) in the first half against one of his former teams in the Hornets.
QUOTE TO NOTE
Buddy Hield on eventually playing with Joel Embiid…
“I just know that right now, we just got to win games until he gets back. I know when he gets back, it will be a whole different style of basketball. That’s all I know. We are just trying to sustain this storm right now until he gets back. It’s going to be a whole different style of basketball because I’ve been on the other side - where I had to prepare to guard him - and the guy is getting traps all day. So, what we are playing now is a wholly different game.”
FOLLOW ALONG
Monday’s contest is set for 7:30 p.m. ET in Philadelphia.
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, ESPN
Listen: 97.5 The Fanatic
UNIFORMS
The 76ers are scheduled to wear their royal blue Icon Edition uniforms, while the Heat will wear their red Statement Edition uniforms.
@SIXERS SOCIAL