Embiid scores 27 as Sixers roll over Hawks

LOS ANGELES: Joel Embiid finished with 27 points, nine rebounds and eight assists as the Philadelphia 76ers snapped the Atlanta Hawks’ run of good fortune at home with a 127-111 win in game three of their NBA Eastern Conference playoff series. The teams split the first two games in Philadelphia, but the Sixers dominated Friday to grab a 2-1 series lead and halt the Hawks’ 13-game winning streak at home. Tobias Harris scored 22 points, Ben Simmons tallied 18 points and seven assists, and Furkan Korkmaz drained three of six from beyond the arc for the 76ers in front of a crowd of 16,400 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.

Embiid had a couple of hard falls during the contest but nothing serious. “I’m OK,” said Embiid, who is playing with a cartilage tear in his right knee. “I’m standing up. I’m walking. I finished the game. So I’m gonna keep getting back up. I’m going to keep fighting. That’s been me since I’ve been playing basketball.”

Game four is Monday night in Atlanta. Philadelphia shot 52 per cent overall and an impressive 47 per cent from beyond the arc, making 10 of 21 compared to Atlanta who made just six of 23. Philadelphia’s three point shooting has improved as the series progressed, going from 34 per cent in game one to 46 per cent in game two.

“I was just trying to push the pace and get in the lane, stay aggressive and get to the rim, get into a rhythm,” Simmons said. “I think I did a good job of that in the second half.”