The Philadelphia 76ers defeat the Bulls in a most improbable win

After trailing by one with eight seconds to go, the Philadelphia 76ers squeaked out a win off of a Joel Embiid steal and a pair of clutch free throws.

Be honest, did anyone really believe that the Philadelphia 76ers were going to win this game?

This game had all of the characteristics of a typical Sixers letdown, with the team going up big early, only to watch the lead slip away due to sloppy play. After scoring 33 points in the first quarter, the team came out flat in the second and watched Chicago Bulls bench players like Bobby Portis and David Nwaba put up career performances in a 40 point second quarter.

Though the team did regain some ground in the third, outscoring the Bulls by four, Brett Brown‘s squad finally put it all together in the fourth quarter, tying the game up at 93 only to once again fall behind the Bulls a few minutes later. With the two teams trading blows, and the lead, for the last ten minutes of the game, it looked like the 76ers were done, down by one with eight seconds to go, without the ball.

But not today folks, as the 76ers rallied back in what may be the most improbable eight seconds of basketball this season, and were rewarded with their sixth straight win, their longest win streak since the 2012-2013 season.

With the Bulls ready to inbound the ball, Joel Embiid stole the pass and delivered it to Ben Simmons, who was almost immediately fouled in route to the basket. And with the game on the line, Simmons, a 56 percent free throw shooter, made arguably the two most important shots of his still young NBA career and gave the Sixers a one-point lead with five seconds to go.

And that was the ball game.

I mean sure, the Bulls did take the ball down the court and give Sixers fans a little more heartburn with one final possession, but the team’s stout defense locked down the paint and secured the 76ers first road win since January 26th.

Next: Three takeaways from Embiid’s All-Star performance

While there was plenty to be worried about in the game, as Coach Brown’s squad missed 14 free throws in their first game back after the All-Star break, this was the kind of win a good team needs to win and to paraphrase Embiid himself “(The Sixers) stole this game”. In the NBA, a wins a win, and for a 31-25 with playoff aspirations squeaking out a W against a lesser team is always a good thing, especially in February.