Joel Embiid collected 27 points, nine rebounds and eight assists to fuel the visiting Philadelphia 76ers to a 127-111 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference semi-final series.
Embiid and team-mate Ben Simmons each scored 11 points to highlight a third quarter in which the 76ers outscored the Hawks by a 34-19 margin. Philadelphia coasted from there to seize a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series heading into Game 4 on Monday in Atlanta.
Tobias Harris (22 points) reached the 20-point plateau for the sixth straight game. He went 10-for-16 from the floor, helping the 76ers shoot a blistering 58.2 per cent overall and 47.6 per cent from three-point range (10 of 21).
Simmons finished with 18 points and seven assists, and Furkan Korkmaz scored 14 points off the bench, 11 of them in the first quarter. Korkmaz saw extended playing time in place of starter Danny Green, who left the game in the first quarter due to a right calf strain and did not return.
Trae Young scored 16 of his 28 points in the first half for the Hawks, who saw their 13-game home winning streak come to a halt. John Collins added 23 points and Bogdan Bogdanovic had 19. Danilo Gallinari scored 17 points, and Clint Capela grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds.
Ahead by five at half-time, Philadelphia bolted out of the blocks to begin the third quarter, making its first eight shots from the floor to secure an 80-62 lead. Seth Curry drained a three-pointer and a pair of short jumpers to highlight the 76ers’ 19-6 spurt.
Philadelphia pushed its advantage to 22 points in the fourth quarter before Atlanta scored 13 of the next 17 points to cut the deficit to 110-97 with 5:13 to play. Embiid was fouled on a drive and Young was whistled for a technical foul to halt the momentum.