Sixers appeal to the professional mindset after easily winning Hornets

The Philadelphia 76ers needed to enter the Spectrum Center with the right attitude Friday as they faced the Charlotte Hornets. The Sixers pulled off an impressive and emotional win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday, and they could have easily dropped that one on Friday.

Instead, the Sixers locked in and walked away with a pretty easy one 121-82 victory over the Hornets. They led by as much as 42 points and were able to rest their starters in the fourth quarter as they prepare for Saturday’s Indiana Pacers.

“It just shows we’re focused and showing up and playing,” coach Doc Rivers told reporters. “Each game is an individual game. The Cleveland game, we couldn’t get it to work, it’s just one of those games where we just have to find a way to win. We played great tonight. There’s no guarantee how you’ll play, but there’s a guarantee you’ll show up and we’ll show up every night.”

The Sixers were great on defense. While Joel Embiid was dominant again as he scored 38 points on 16-for-21 shooting and Tobias Harris added 18 points while James Harden had a triple-double, Philadelphia’s defense was great. They kept the Hornets at just 33.7% shooting and kept them at 5-to-35 shooting from depth.

“House or street, it doesn’t matter,” Embiid said. “I think it’s still the same mindset. We have to win every game. We know what matters offensively and defensively, everyone does their job. I think tonight we made it as a team, everyone contributed.”

The Sixers needed this win. While it wouldn’t have been the greatest deal on earth had they lost given the circumstances and tough schedule, this is a win they needed to head in the right direction.

“We’re supposed to be out there enjoying ourselves,” Harris added. “Any time we have a lead like that the guys contribute, that’s great for us. To have those kind of wins where everyone feels good and stuff like that, we also know that we have to do those things tomorrow as well. These are important games, whenever we have lads with us, things are going well and the mood is good, that helps us too.”