Joel Embiid sets franchise record with 70 points in 76ers' win over Wembanyama, Spurs
PHILADELPHIA (AP) Joel Embiid put on a performance for the ages - and thought it could've been even better.
Embiid scored a franchise-record 70 points, the most in the NBA this season, to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 133-123 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night.
He was 24 of 41 from the field, including 1 of 2 from 3-point range, and made 21 of 23 free throws. Embiid also set a career high with 18 rebounds. He broke Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain’s 76ers record of 68 points, set on Dec. 16, 1967, with a layup with 1:41 to play.
“I was actually mad at myself because I missed a lot of easy shots that I’ve been making all season,” he said.
Chamberlain was playing for the Philadelphia Warriors when he set the NBA record with 100 points.
“Obviously, Wilt accomplished a lot of things,” Embiid said. “To be in the same conversation is pretty cool. It was just a great night. Had it going. They just kept giving me the ball and I just finished it.”
A six-time All-Star and the league’s reigning MVP, Embiid has scored at least 30 points in 21 consecutive games. The 76ers have won six in a row.
“The only thing I told my teammates was, 'Please don’t force it,'” he said. “Let’s just play basketball. We were just trying to play the right way.”
Rookie Victor Wembanyama had 33 points and seven rebounds in 29 minutes in the first matchup between the 7-footers. The rebuilding Spurs fell to 5-19 on the road.
“It would have been more fun in a win, of course, but it’s inspiring, especially offensively,” Wembanyama said of playing against Embiid.
Embiid had tied his career high of 59 points through three quarters and re-entered the contest with 6:38 left and Philadelphia ahead 118-104. With the record in sight, the 76ers were feeding him the ball at every opportunity.
“The game was still pretty close,” Embiid said. “Felt like I needed to go back in. Once I got back in, I was like, ‘There’s my chance. Might as well go and do it.’”
Philadelphia first-year coach Nick Nurse marveled at Embiid's performance.
“Obviously he can score in so many ways, just his sheer size gets him a lot of stuff around the basket, gets him a lot of free throws,” Nurse said. “The shooting touch is the skill part. The way he moves, the skill he has, the size he is, and he gets motivated like that, anything can happen I guess.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo had the previous high game in the NBA this season with 64 points.
Embiid embraced former 76ers coach Brett Brown, now a Spurs assistant, after the game and later praised him.
“He’s done a lot not just for me but for the whole city of Philadelphia," Embiid said. “I’m kind of glad I did it in front of him so he can kind of see the product of what he created.”
All eyes were on Embiid and Wembanyama from even before the first tip when fans lined the court to watch the Spurs’ French phenom in warmups. The home fans already know what Embiid can do, and Philadelphia’s star might have wanted to make sure they didn’t forget.
“It will be interesting for all of us to see for the first time,” Nurse said before the game.
Electrifying might have been a better adjective.
Embiid hit a 13-footer over Wembanyama 1:11 into the contest. The Spurs rookie responded impressively, with a pair of 3-pointers within 27 seconds of each other, and then finished an alley-oop dunk before heading to the bench with 6:27 left in the first due to two fouls.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich joked before the game that the Spurs' plan against Embiid was to "hammer his (butt). I told Wemby to back him down over the rim and just throw him through the rim.”
But it was clear from the start that nothing was going to work. Embiid had 24 points on 8-for-12 shooting in the first quarter.
Embiid was impressed with Wembanyama.
“He’s great, man,” Embiid said. “He’s got everything, size, skill, got everything. Bright future. He’s already pretty good. Once he develops, he’s going to be a lot of problems for a lot of guys in this league.”
Embiid hopes it's after he retires.
“Hopefully when I don’t have to guard him and I’m out of the league, hopefully he can break all these records,” he said.
UP NEXT
Spurs: Host Oklahoma City on Wednesday night.
76ers: At Indiana on Thursday night.
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Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
12:00 | Victor Wembanyama vs. Joel Embiid (Tre Jones gains possession) | |||
11:37 | +3 | Jeremy Sochan makes three point jump shot (Devin Vassell assists) | 3-0 | |
11:25 | Julian Champagnie shooting foul (Joel Embiid draws the foul) | |||
11:25 | +1 | Joel Embiid makes regular free throw 1 of 3 | 3-1 | |
11:25 | +1 | Joel Embiid makes regular free throw 2 of 3 | 3-2 | |
11:25 | +1 | Joel Embiid makes regular free throw 3 of 3 | 3-3 | |
11:07 | +3 | Julian Champagnie makes three point jump shot (Jeremy Sochan assists) | 6-3 | |
10:49 | +2 | Joel Embiid makes two point pullup jump shot (Tyrese Maxey assists) | 6-5 | |
10:37 | +3 | Victor Wembanyama makes three point stepback jump shot (Devin Vassell assists) | 9-5 | |
10:18 | Tobias Harris misses three point jump shot | |||
10:15 | Victor Wembanyama defensive rebound | |||
10:10 | +3 | Victor Wembanyama makes three point running pullup jump shot | 12-5 | |
9:47 | Joel Embiid misses two point fadeaway jump shot | |||
9:44 | Julian Champagnie defensive rebound | |||
9:36 | +2 | Devin Vassell makes two point driving layup (Julian Champagnie assists) | 14-5 | |
9:36 | Spurs 60 second timeout | |||
9:20 | +3 | Nicolas Batum makes three point jump shot (Joel Embiid assists) | 14-8 | |
9:06 | Victor Wembanyama misses two point turnaround bank hook shot | |||
9:03 | Tobias Harris defensive rebound | |||
8:55 | +2 | Joel Embiid makes two point stepback jump shot (Tobias Harris assists) | 14-10 | |
8:48 | Joel Embiid shooting foul (Victor Wembanyama draws the foul) | |||
8:48 | +1 | Victor Wembanyama makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 15-10 | |
8:48 | +1 | Victor Wembanyama makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 16-10 | |
8:31 | +2 | Tobias Harris makes two point pullup jump shot (Tyrese Maxey assists) | 16-12 | |
8:10 | Jeremy Sochan misses two point driving layup | |||
8:07 | Joel Embiid defensive rebound | |||
8:02 | Victor Wembanyama shooting foul (Joel Embiid draws the foul) | |||
8:02 | +1 | Joel Embiid makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 16-13 | |
8:02 | +1 | Joel Embiid makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 16-14 | |
7:49 | Jeremy Sochan turnover (bad pass) (Nicolas Batum steals) | |||
7:43 | +2 | Kelly Oubre Jr. makes two point running dunk (Nicolas Batum assists) | 16-16 | |
7:43 | Spurs 60 second timeout | |||
7:23 | +3 | Devin Vassell makes three point jump shot (Jeremy Sochan assists) | 19-16 | |
7:06 | +2 | Joel Embiid makes two point dunk (Nicolas Batum assists) | 19-18 | |
6:54 | +2 | Victor Wembanyama makes two point alley-oop dunk (Devin Vassell assists) | 21-18 | |
6:30 | Tobias Harris misses three point jump shot | |||
6:29 | Nicolas Batum offensive rebound | |||
6:27 | Victor Wembanyama shooting foul (Kelly Oubre Jr. draws the foul) | |||
6:27 | Kelly Oubre Jr. misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
6:27 | 76ers offensive rebound | |||
6:27 | Kelly Oubre Jr. misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
6:24 | Zach Collins defensive rebound | |||
6:06 | Julian Champagnie misses two point cutting layup | |||
6:02 | Tyrese Maxey defensive rebound | |||
5:55 | +2 | Joel Embiid makes two point cutting layup (Nicolas Batum assists) | 21-20 | |
5:55 | Zach Collins shooting foul (Joel Embiid draws the foul) | |||
5:55 | +1 | Joel Embiid makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 21-21 | |
5:40 | Zach Collins misses three point stepback jump shot | |||
5:35 | Jeremy Sochan offensive rebound | |||
5:29 | +3 | Devin Vassell makes three point stepback jump shot | 24-21 | |
5:09 | Joel Embiid misses two point fadeaway jump shot | |||
5:07 | Nicolas Batum offensive rebound | |||
5:06 | Danuel House Jr. misses three point jump shot | |||
5:05 | Tre Jones defensive rebound | |||
4:48 | +2 | Devin Vassell makes two point driving finger roll layup | 26-21 | |
4:36 | +2 | Tyrese Maxey makes two point driving floating jump shot (Joel Embiid assists) | 26-23 | |
4:29 | Jeremy Sochan turnover (double dribble) | |||
4:16 | Tyrese Maxey turnover (lost ball) (Tre Jones steals) | |||
4:11 | +2 | Keldon Johnson makes two point running finger roll layup (Tre Jones assists) | 28-23 | |
3:47 | Nicolas Batum misses three point jump shot | |||
3:44 | Joel Embiid offensive rebound | |||
3:42 | Joel Embiid misses two point putback layup | |||
3:42 | Joel Embiid offensive rebound | |||
3:39 | +2 | Joel Embiid makes two point putback layup | 28-25 | |
3:35 | Nicolas Batum personal foul (Tre Jones draws the foul) | |||
3:24 | Furkan Korkmaz blocks Devin Vassell's two point cutting layup | |||
3:21 | Joel Embiid defensive rebound | |||
3:18 | +2 | Joel Embiid makes two point running pullup jump shot | 28-27 | |
2:59 | Zach Collins misses two point driving finger roll layup | |||
2:57 | Tobias Harris defensive rebound | |||
2:53 | Devin Vassell shooting foul (Danuel House Jr. draws the foul) | |||
2:53 | Danuel House Jr. misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
2:53 | 76ers offensive rebound | |||
2:53 | +1 | Danuel House Jr. makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 28-28 | |
2:39 | Zach Collins misses three point jump shot | |||
2:37 | Doug McDermott offensive rebound | |||
2:32 | Blake Wesley misses three point jump shot | |||
2:32 | Zach Collins offensive rebound | |||
2:27 | Doug McDermott misses three point jump shot | |||
2:26 | 76ers defensive rebound | |||
2:14 | Furkan Korkmaz misses two point driving finger roll layup | |||
2:13 | Joel Embiid offensive rebound | |||
2:12 | Keldon Johnson shooting foul (Joel Embiid draws the foul) | |||
2:12 | +1 | Joel Embiid makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 28-29 | |
2:12 | +1 | Joel Embiid makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 28-30 | |
1:55 | +2 | Keldon Johnson makes two point cutting layup (Zach Collins assists) | 30-30 | |
1:43 | Furkan Korkmaz misses two point driving floating jump shot | |||
1:40 | Joel Embiid offensive rebound | |||
1:38 | +2 | Joel Embiid makes two point putback layup | 30-32 | |
1:25 | +2 | Doug McDermott makes two point driving floating jump shot (Zach Collins assists) | 32-32 | |
1:08 | Tobias Harris misses two point turnaround jump shot | |||
1:06 | Cedi Osman defensive rebound | |||
1:01 | +3 | Doug McDermott makes three point jump shot (Cedi Osman assists) | 35-32 | |
0:43 | +2 | Joel Embiid makes two point reverse layup | 35-34 | |
0:28 | Zach Collins misses three point jump shot | |||
0:25 | Furkan Korkmaz defensive rebound | |||
0:03 | Joel Embiid misses two point fadeaway jump shot | |||
0:00 | Doug McDermott defensive rebound | |||
0:00 | Doug McDermott misses three point pullup jump shot | |||
0:00 | Spurs offensive rebound | |||
0:00 | End of period |
Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
11:42 | Tyrese Maxey misses three point jump shot | |||
11:39 | Paul Reed offensive rebound | |||
11:27 | Tyrese Maxey misses two point driving floating jump shot | |||
11:27 | 76ers offensive rebound | |||
11:20 | +2 | Tobias Harris makes two point turnaround jump shot | 35-36 | |
11:10 | +2 | Victor Wembanyama makes two point turnaround bank hook shot (Blake Wesley assists) | 37-36 | |
10:53 | +2 | KJ Martin makes two point alley-oop dunk (Tyrese Maxey assists) | 37-38 | |
10:44 | Paul Reed personal foul (Cedi Osman draws the foul) | |||
10:39 | Victor Wembanyama misses two point pullup jump shot | |||
10:36 | Paul Reed defensive rebound | |||
10:27 | +3 | Tyrese Maxey makes three point stepback jump shot | 37-41 | |
10:12 | +2 | Victor Wembanyama makes two point cutting dunk (Devin Vassell assists) | 39-41 | |
9:48 | Tyrese Maxey misses three point pullup jump shot | |||
9:42 | Devin Vassell defensive rebound | |||
9:36 | Tobias Harris personal foul (Victor Wembanyama draws the foul) | |||
9:30 | +2 | Victor Wembanyama makes two point driving dunk (Devin Vassell assists) | 41-41 | |
9:06 | +2 | Tobias Harris makes two point turnaround fadeaway jump shot | 41-43 | |
8:54 | Furkan Korkmaz shooting foul (Tre Jones draws the foul) | |||
8:54 | +1 | Tre Jones makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 42-43 | |
8:54 | +1 | Tre Jones makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 43-43 | |
8:34 | +2 | Paul Reed makes two point jump shot (Tobias Harris assists) | 43-45 | |
8:21 | Zach Collins turnover (out of bounds bad pass) | |||
8:06 | +2 | Tyrese Maxey makes two point driving floating jump shot (Tobias Harris assists) | 43-47 | |
7:53 | Devin Vassell misses three point jump shot | |||
7:50 | Paul Reed defensive rebound | |||
7:29 | KJ Martin misses two point driving layup | |||
7:28 | Paul Reed offensive rebound | |||
7:27 | Paul Reed misses two point tip layup | |||
7:26 | Paul Reed offensive rebound | |||
7:25 | Paul Reed misses two point putback layup | |||
7:24 | Paul Reed offensive rebound | |||
7:23 | +2 | Paul Reed makes two point tip layup | 43-49 | |
7:22 | Spurs 60 second timeout | |||
7:03 | Doug McDermott misses three point jump shot | |||
6:59 | Joel Embiid defensive rebound | |||
6:39 | Tyrese Maxey misses two point stepback jump shot | |||
6:37 | Tre Jones defensive rebound | |||
6:34 | Devin Vassell misses three point running jump shot | |||
6:29 | KJ Martin defensive rebound | |||
6:27 | +2 | Tobias Harris makes two point running dunk (KJ Martin assists) | 43-51 | |
6:13 | +2 | Doug McDermott makes two point cutting finger roll layup (Zach Collins assists) | 45-51 | |
5:57 | Joel Embiid misses two point pullup jump shot | |||
5:54 | Zach Collins defensive rebound | |||
5:50 | Tre Jones misses two point driving floating bank jump shot | |||
5:48 | Zach Collins offensive rebound | |||
5:39 | Doug McDermott misses three point jump shot | |||
5:38 | Tyrese Maxey defensive rebound | |||
5:23 | Doug McDermott shooting foul (Joel Embiid draws the foul) | |||
5:23 | +1 | Joel Embiid makes regular free throw 1 of 2 |