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Sixers-Magic observations, 'best' and 'worst' awards: Sharing the ball makes Philly unstoppable against Orlando

This was the Sixers' fourth straight game and 19th this season with at least 30 assists.

The Philadelphia 76ers had 30 assists on 42 made baskets in their 118-98 win over the Orlando Magic.
The Philadelphia 76ers had 30 assists on 42 made baskets in their 118-98 win over the Orlando Magic.Read moreJohn Raoux/AP
    by Keith Pompey | Columnist
    Published 

ORLANDO — Here are my main takeaways and "best" and "worst" awards from the 76ers' 118-98 victory over the Orlando Magic on Thursday night at the Amway Center.

Five observations

  1. Philly is playing great when it comes to sharing the ball. The Sixers had 30 assists on 42 baskets against the Magic. This was their fourth straight game and 19th this season with at least 30 assists. This also marked their 23rd consecutive game with 20-plus assists. That's the team's longest streak since the Sixers did in 24 straight games from Nov. 24, 1992 to Jan. 13, 1993.

  2. This the 56th time the Sixers have scored at least 100 points this season. This is the most 100-point games they had in a season since posting 69 during the 1989-90 campaign.

  3. Ben Simmons had another one of those 'Coach-stopped-me-from-posting-a-triple-double' games. The Sixers point guard finished with six points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists  in just 26 minutes, 32 seconds of action. With the game all but decided, he exited the game for good with 2:58 left in the third quarter.

  4. Joel Embiid  played with swag on Thursday. He posed after a pair of first-half dunks. Then on his made three-pointer, Embiid turned around and ran back on defense before the ball went in the basket.

  5. Ersan Ilyasova showed why the Sixers were eager to add him for a postseason push. The reserve power forward scored a team-high 18 points on 7-for-11 shooting. He went 3 of 4 from on three-pointers.

‘Best’ and ‘worst’ awards

  1. Best performance: This goes to Ilyasova on a night when any of his teammates could have easily won it.

  2. Worst performance: I had to give to Nik Vucevic, who looked disinteresting in playing. The Magic center had seven points on 3-for-11 shooting. He also finished with just four rebounds to go with two turnovers while grading out at game-worst minus 25.

  3. Best defensive performance: Simmons gets this with his three steals and one block.

  4. Worst statistic: This goes to Orlando shooting 17.4 percent in the third quarter.

  5. Best statistic: This goes to the Sixers having 19 assists on 26 made baskets in the first half.

  6. Worst of the worst: This goes to the state of the Magic. This was a poor display of basketball.  Sure they were undermanned. However, the starters, who played, looked disinterested after a while.