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Biggest reason for 76ers’ loss to Knicks exposed by Nick Nurse
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- Biggest reason for 76ers’ loss to Knicks exposed by Nick Nurse
Biggest reason for 76ers' loss to Knicks exposed by Nick Nurse appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
Despite the news that Joel Embiid would miss Game 2 of the Philadelphia 76ers ' second-round series against the New York Knicks on Wednesday night, Philly still had every chance to steal a road win at Madison Square Garden and even the series.
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Unfortunately for Nick Nurse and company, that didn't come to fruition. A few execution errors late in the game haunted the Sixers in the end, and the Knicks escaped with a hard-fought 108-102 win to take a commanding 2-0 series lead.
After the game, Nurse pinpointed the biggest difference in the game that cost the Sixers a chance to steal home-court advantage.
"They got their hands on a couple, we made a couple of mistakes on inbounds as well," Nurse said. "That is certainly one negative of the game, and then they turn those into points. The difference in the game is the turnovers and points off turnovers, one of the differences for sure."
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The stats back Nurse up, Philly finished the game with 18 turnovers, far too many to win a playoff game against an elite team on the road. The Knicks scored 23 points off of those giveaways. On the other end of the floor, the Knicks turned the ball over 13 times leading to just nine 76ers points, so it's easy to see where that impacted the final score in a six-point game.
The Sixers also got rough shooting nights from their stars. Tyrese Maxey shot 9-of-23 for 26 points and also turned the ball over six times, while Paul George shot just 7-of-18.
Karl-Anthony Towns struggled in the first half of this game due to foul trouble, but he came alive in the second half to finish with 20 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Jalen Brunson led the way as usual with 26 points, and OG Anunoby added 24 in the win for New York.
Philly still hasn't had a chance to get any real rest after taking down the Celtics in Game 7 on Saturday night. The Sixers will only have one day off once again before a must-win Game 3 at home on Friday night.
Related: Knicks' Karl-Anthony Towns thanks John Calipari after viral Game 2 moment vs. 76ers
Related: Paul George reveals what went wrong for 76ers in Game 2's 4th quarter
