NBA Game Preview - Indiana at Philadelphia

Sat Nov 30, 2019 7:00 PM EST

The Philadelphia 76ers will be searching for their third straight victory and seventh in the last eight when they host the Indiana Pacers on Saturday.

The Sixers rallied from a 16-point deficit on the road and defeated the New York Knicks 101-95 on Friday. Joel Embiid had 27 points, a season-best 17 rebounds and three blocked shots. It was the ninth game for Embiid this season with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.

James Ennis III added a season-high 20 points off the bench in just 22 minutes. Tobias Harris scored 19 points and Ben Simmons had 15 points, eight assists and five rebounds.

Philadelphia won again without forward Al Horford (rest) and guard Josh Richardson (hip).

The Sixers are a perfect 8-0 at home.

"We are starting to morph into a very unique team," Sixers head coach Brett Brown said. "This is not a traditional team with a stretch four, three flyers, a point guard and a center. It's not like that. We are really big, and I think growing the team where you can help them score and feel more comfortable in an environment is most on my mind. I like our defense. I've said it before, our offense will come."

At home, the Sixers have won in a variety of ways. It will be difficult to extend the streak against a very talented group in the Pacers.

"Every time I get out there, it's another experience to get out in front of these fans," rookie Matisse Thybulle said. "Each game, I'm blown away by how much energy they bring and just how (Embiid) interacts with them and how much they help us win these games. It's been really cool to just see us take care of business at home."

The red-hot Pacers will enter this matchup at 12-6 with a five-game winning streak. They held off the visiting Atlanta Hawks 105-104 in overtime on Friday. Trae Young tied his career-high with 49 points for the Hawks.

Jeremy Lamb led the way with 20 points while Domantas Sabonis added a double-double of 17 points and 12 rebounds. Myles Turner scored 17 points and Malcolm Brogdon and T.J. Warren had 16 apiece.

"They say turkey will put you to sleep," Pacers head coach Nate McMillan said. "We looked that way in the first half. You're gonna have to win games like this and tonight was one of those nights where we had to grind it out and make plays to win the game."

Even though the Pacers were 6 of 26 from beyond the 3-point arc, McMillan has been imploring his team to shoot from that distance.

They have too many good shooters not to take them.

"Coach has been preaching not to be hesitant shooting the ball," Brogdon told the Indianapolis Star. "We've got to shoot more threes to stay up to speed with some of these other teams in the league. We're good 3-point shooters."

The Pacers will look to prove their shooting mettle in what will be the first of a difficult five-game road trip.

--Field Level Media