Joel Embiid had 23 points, 15 rebounds and a huge assist to Kelly Oubre Jr. on a three-point play that led the 76ers to a 105-104 victory over the Miami Heat in the Conference Play-In Tournament Is Wednesday. .
The 76ers earned the seventh seed and advanced to face the second-seeded New York Knicks in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. The first match will take place on Saturday at Madison Square Garden.
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Miami Heat – who advanced from the Play-In to the NBA Finals a year ago – face the winner of the Chicago-Atlanta game on Friday, with the winner earning the eighth seed.
Embiid exploded out of a quiet game late in the fourth and brought the Sixers down by 14 in the second half. Embiid, who has missed 43 games this season, was a non-factor as Nicolas Batum and Buddy Hield improbably sparked the 76ers in the second half. Batum had 20 points.
But when the Sixers needed big buckets, Embiid stepped up. Embiid buried a go-ahead 3-pointer from the top of the arc with 2:33 left for a 93-91 lead that sent a crowd — which had nearly booed the Sixers out of the building by halftime — in a frenzy. After the Sixers lost that lead, Embiid was clutch again with a three-point play for a 96-94 lead.
With the game tied at 96, Miami’s Tyler Herro was whistled for a backcourt violation. Embiid slipped the ball to Oubre under the basket for the bucket, the free throw and a 99-96 lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
The 76ers played this one like it was Game 7 – and for good reason. They like their chances against the upstart Knicks rather than playing for the No. 8 seed, a date with the NBA’s best, the Boston Celtics.
That’s what Miami will face if it can pull out of Friday’s game and make the playoffs in this format for the second straight season.
Herro – who hit a 3 at the horn to make it the final score – finished with 25 points and Jimmy Butler had 19.
