Joel Embiid had 32 points, eight assists and seven rebounds to lift the Philadelphia 76ers past the host Atlanta Hawks 126-116 in the NBA in-season tournament on Friday.
Embiid hit all 11 free-throw attempts.
The Sixers, who snapped a two-game losing streak, improved to 2-1 while the Hawks fell to 1-1 in East Group A play of the in-season tournament.
Tobias Harris added 29 points and 10 rebounds, Tyrese Maxey scored 19 and Danuel House Jr. had 14. De’Anthony Melton also had 14.
Trae Young led the Hawks with 22 points and 13 assists while Jalen Johnson added 18 points and 10 rebounds.
Saddiq Bey scored 17 points and Clint Capela had 17 points and 11 rebounds. Bogdan Bogdanovic and Dejounte Murray contributed 13 points each.
The Sixers pulled ahead 107-95 with 8:11 remaining in the fourth quarter when Harris dropped in a 3-pointer from the corner. After a Hawks turnover, Harris scored again for a 14-point advantage.
Embiid hit a 15-foot jumper and the Sixers took a 115-101 lead with 4:32 left.
Maxey hit a step-back 3-pointer from the wing with 3:05 left in the second for a 51-45 Sixers lead.
The Hawks then responded with a 9-0 spurt, highlighted by De’Andre Hunter’s deep trey, to go back ahead by three.
Harris converted a three-point play with 3.3 seconds remaining and the Sixers went ahead 57-56 at halftime.
Embiid led the Sixers with 15 points and Maxey scored all 12 in the second.
Johnson paced the Hawks with 10.
Hunter was ejected 1:33 into the third for vehemently arguing a foul.
Johnson hit a turnaround jumper to cap a 13-2 run for a 73-68 Atlanta lead with 6:14 left in the third.
The Sixers responded and when Maxey dropped in a 3-pointer with 4:13 left, the Sixers led 78-76. They stayed aggressive and went on to go ahead 84-76 following a layup by House Jr. with 2:54 remaining.
Young knocked down a 3-pointer with 15.5 seconds left but the Hawks still trailed 94-87 at the end of the third.
–Field Level Media
