The latest matchup between the Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets did not disappoint. Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic were each brilliant in their own right but Embiid had the upper hand and pulled out the 126-121 win on the second night of a back-to-back.

Embiid ended his 30-point-10-rebound streak but did so in style with 41 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds. Tyrese Maxey recorded 25 points and nine assists and Tobias Harris had 24 points. Jokic recorded 25 points, 19 rebounds and three assists, which matches a season-low. Jamal Murray contributed 17 points and 10 assists while Michael Porter Jr. scored 20 points. Both teams shot at least 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from the three-point line.

The 76ers went with various defenses in an attempt to slow down the Nuggets, starting with unique matchups in man-to-man. On offense, Embiid's gravity opened up everything for his teammates and his picturesque jumper helped him take it all home. Let's dive into the film,

Embiid drops dimes

With seven assists in the first half, Embiid set a new career-high for assists in a single half. He ended the game with 10 as the Nuggets tried (and succeeded) in getting the ball out of his hands often. But it didn’t always benefit them.

Embiid got a few of his assists in dribble-handoffs, which account for pretty easy assists, though he did use Denver's aggression against them to spring Batum open. Here, he gives it up to Batum and screens Jokic, who is slow to get over and provides the veteran with a warm-up shot. Aaron Gordon knows he was supposed to fight over the screen, immediately raising his hand after the swish. But it surely can’t be easy to rationalize leaving our assignment in a split-second when you have the most important matchup.

The Nuggets knew they had to throw multiple bodies at Embiid. Just as important as his assist number was his turnover number of just three, each of which happened in the second half. The blitzing and double-teaming didn’t get to him for much of the game.

Embiid was also able to use double-teams to his advantage thanks to the 76ers' off-ball movement. When the Nuggets went to a center-roaming defense with Gordon on Embiid (as they did in the above clip), Jokic took Marcus Morris Sr. All it took to get Jokic onto a quickness disadvantage was to have him cut and have Patrick Beverley replace his spot. Once nice dribble into the paint and push shot later, Philly had another score.

Embiid and Maxey showed their love for the Will Ferrell movie Semi-Pro by passing back and forth until a bucket arose. The 76ers differed from the Flint Tropics by finding a scoring window for the guard, not the big man. The Nuggets rotations look all out of whack as the Philly stars link up for another bucket.

In the play below, the Sixers put Gordon in no man's land, leading to a corner three. Swinging it to Maxey out of the double brings up the low man, opening up the corner in a three-on-two advantage among the baseline. Embiid, still keeping his head up to keep Jokic guessing, delivers a dart to Harris for an open shot that he drains.

Embiid out-playmaking Jokic was a very fun, interesting wrinkle to their battle yesterday. While Jokic absolutely feasted on the glass, securing 11 offensive rebounds, Embiid beautifully orchestrated the 76ers offense.

Boom Boom

Nico Batum.

The 35-year-old veteran has wedged his way fully into the hearts of Philly fans by doing seemingly everything the 76ers need. Even with his best athleticism long gone, his size, touch and IQ make him the jack of all trades. He's someone who may not ace the numbers test but can blow the eye test out of the water each and every game. Take a look at some of the winning plays he made.

A sequence where he hustled all the way back on defense to deny a breakaway score, then immediately gets back into the play to stuff Jokic on a second-chance layup:

Another one of his incredible triples where he doesn’t bring the ball below his face:

A clutch block from behind on Murray where he perfectly times the shot and hangs around the scene of the play a little longer to soak it all in:

An offensive rebound that he got by running across the baseline and a putback layup by squeezing it right past Jokic's outstretched arm:

Batum is the role player the 76ers never knew they needed. Not only does he make plays like this but he always matches up with younger, quicker guards each time out. After spending a week guarding Trae Young, De'Aaron Fox and Fred VanVleet, he took on Murray and used his size to bother him on numerous shots. His relentless defense and effort, which was also seen when he boxed out Jokic to get a rebound, go a very long way.

Left elbow, home sweet home

The similarities with the Embiid-Jokic matchup from last season don’t stop at just defensive alignment where Embiid roamed off of Jokic for a good portion of the matchup. Embiid once again took over down the stretch, scoring 11 points in the fourth quarter. Most of his damage from the field came from the left elbow/wing.

Embiid reverted back to a more simple game in crunch time,  guarding Jokic and looking to get buckets in isolation. The 76ers spaced the floor out to make it tougher double and let the big fella cook. Gordon has to be active with his hands to make up for Embiid being roughly four inches taller. Right when they’re in the cookie jar, Embiid rises up and hits the jumper.

Once again, Embiid demonstrated his understanding of how to get a foul called on him. Many onlookers may not like it but it is a skill that he can tap into to manufacture points and put pressure on the defense.

Later, Embiid got the ball from his star guard, sized up Jokic and drilled a triple using some nice footwork to get himself open. It served as a monumental bucket not just for the game itself but as a reminder that he can go blow-for-blow with the player he and many others consider the best in the sport.

Wait, sorry, that was from last year. I knew I was getting deja vu.

Here’s the clip from yesterday’s game:

Unlike his dagger over Jokic from last year, Embiid had some more to do after getting the best of Jokic. He went back closer to the elbow, where Gordon had learned his lesson. He kept his hands up but away from the big man. That’s still enough space for Embiid, even with five digits in his grill, to make a jumper.

The 76ers will see the Nuggets again real soon at their place to start a road trip. All eyes will be on Embiid to see if he is able to face off with Jokic at Ball Arena in the mountains.