The Miami Heat are a Bunch of Scumbags But the Sixers Win “The Mask” Game

Well, 876 fouls later (actually 56 which is a playoff record) and the Philadelphia 76ers are right back in the drivers seat after EXPLODING in the 4th quarter last night for a 128-108 win in the 305.

The final score does not tell the whole story, and it’s a lengthy one, of how certifiably insane this game was. There was a game on TNT a few weeks ago where we beat the Cavs on the road. Similar showing but so much different. It was back and forth the whole way until we pulled away in the 4th quarter. Back then, I thought that game had playoff intensity that I could barely handle. Welp, by the end of the 3rd quarter tonight it felt like I ran a marathon in my living room.




As far as the gameplay, the Heat went from physical in Game 2 to borderline dirty Game 3. Take your pick between these bull shit moves:






They were flat out assholes. They fouled on every possession, even if it wasn’t called and they did a wholeeee lot of talking. If Goran Dragic ever screams in Marco Bellinelli’s face again I will be in a Miami-Dade prison cell. Plus, Kelly Olynyk is still alive, which really pisses me off. With all that other shit going on, it would have been easy to lose focus and have things spiral out of control. Instead, the Sixers turned a 2 point lead at the beginning of the 4th quarter, to a 20 point victory at the end of it. Our Process babies have grown up before our eyes. I would like Joel Embiid taunting Justise Winslow after that block tattooed on one side of my face and then Ben Simmons screaming in Winslow’s face after the late dunk on the other side.

On a serious note, two factors led to the huge turnaround from Game 2 to 3. First of which is so simple and clearly visible. Joel Embiid is back and mask or not he’s one of the best players in the league. Late in the game, he hits a bank shot over James Johnson and follows it up with a dagger three pointer over Kelly Olynyk. It’s unguardable. Without Embiid, the Sixers playing the Heat are like two 6 seeds playing against each other. With Embiid, he’s a mismatch the Heat, and many other franchises, don’t have an answer for.

https://twitter.com/WhistleSports/status/987148203970650113




The other decisive factor was the addition of Justin Anderson to the rotation . Coming out of this game, I not only feel confident because Embiid is back, but because we have our playoff rotation set. Unfortunately, I doubt that rotation will include Markelle Fultz much. He looks lost setting our offense up and star struck trying to guard D Wade. I don’t blame him. When Wade won NBA Finals MVP in 2006, Fultz was 7 years old. This is like when Calvin Cambridge gets MJ’s shoes and starts playing in the NBA. He will get up to speed, but for now it’s TJ’s time. Back to Anderson, who’s physicality as a defender is a necessity in this series. The altercation with Wade will be the lead story, but Anderson really denied the classic Wade shot selection. If Covington isn’t producing much, I’m all in on plugging Justin Anderson in as a “3 and D” who brings the energy and physicality.

So, that’s a wrap on Game 3. Here’s the only issue I have: with the Eagles, I had a week for my heart to recover between playoff games. With the Sixers, we’re right back at this thing on Saturday afternoon.



By Aidan Powers | April 19, 2018