The Philadelphia 76ers (34-25) had a great chance to get back in the win column as they took on the Charlotte Hornets (15-45). The Sixers played way down to their competition but still won the game, 121-114.

Let’s break down the Sixers' hideous win.

76ers player notes:

Tyrese Maxey: 33 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 11-29 FG shooting

Following his masterclass against the Boston Celtics, Maxey was merely “normally good” against the Hornets. Charlotte blitzed him from time to time, which worked, but he still looked like he possessed a whole different gear of speed and scoring creativity. Still staying aggressive despite not being able to get frequent whistles, he was pivotal in this game — especially in crunch time, per usual.

Tobias Harris: 31 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 13-19 FG shooting

In his first good game in a while, Harris shot the ball well and took the right shots on top of making good kickout passes. His three-point volume was particularly encouraging and he posted a new season-high in rebounds to boot. While he still left plenty to be desired on defense, this was a much-needed performance. If he doesn’t play this well, the 76ers could have easily lost.

Hornets player notes:

Vasilije Micic: 13 points, 0 rebounds, 7 assists, 4-9 FG shooting

A former future Sixer, Micic took it right to the team that drafted him but that he never played for. His modest stat line doesn’t fully illustrate how well he organized the Hornets' offense and created open shots for his teammates. With him in the game, they made the Sixers defense look pathetic.

Miles Bridges had the best stat line on the Hornets (27 points, 11 rebounds, 10-18 shooting) but his ball-stopping tendency and bad shot selection that was made passable by shooting luck made Charlotte lose his minutes by a lot (game-worst -19).

Game recap:

The Hornets have been a bit spunky since the trade deadline, winning five of their nine games since then with Tre Mann and Grant Williams showing out and Brandon Miller continually improving. But they came into Philadelphia on the second night of a back-to-back after losing to the Milwaukee Bucks. At least that game was in Charlotte, so they stayed in the same time zone. But it gave the 76ers a great chance to snatch a victory, especially with the continually improving Brandon Miller joining LaMelo Ball and Mark Williams on the inactive list.

Nick Nurse made a big lineup change with Mo Bamba and Kyle Lowry starting alongside Maxey, Tobias Harris and Buddy Hield. Kelly Oubre Jr and KJ Martin were out while former Sixer Seth Curry started for Charlotte.

1st half

Bamba immediately made an impact with a pair of blocked shots in the first three minutes. Simply being able to reach shots high up with relative ease should make him someone who can impact defensive possessions each and every time. But his lack of playmaking feel and a brutal pass that Curry easily stole made things harder for the 76ers, who started the game shooting poorly. The Hornets were even worse, a dismal 2-11 to start off.

Harris got off to a pretty solid start, making three of his first five shots, two of which were treys. As Nico Batum, Paul Reed and Cam Payne came into the game, so too did Vasilije Micic, a 2014 second-round pick of the Sixers who only made the leap to the NBA after he was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Al Horford trade. He was then sent to Charlotte in the Gordon Hayward trade at this season's trade deadline. At long last, he made it to Philly.

Davis Bertans nailed a pair of tough triples and a one-legged fadeaway to help the Hornets cut into the deficit. Harris continued to play with confidence as he ended the quarter by drilling a corner three off of a feed from Maxey. Although the strength of his opponent was in the dumps, he played his best quarter in a while with 13 points on 5-7 shooting.

The start of the second quarter couldn’t have gone much worse for the Sixers. Micic carved them up with his wise playmaking that Nick Richards and Grant Williams used to score on rolls to the hoop. An emphatic slam from Ricky Council IV provided a very nice highlight but didn’t help them get out of a dogfight with one of the NBA's worst teams. Council was a reason why, as his shooting aside from that dunk was entirely unproductive.

The Hornets moved the ball well and immediately took the open shots they could find, mounting a 12-point lead. Back-to-back 76ers triples made an instant dent and the Maxey-Hield-Lowry-led units continued to get back into the game, though Payne took Lowry's spot to close out the half. Charlotte stayed ahead as Philly looked for answers on defense and half-court offense.

At the break, the 76ers trailed 63-58. The Hornets had made nine of their 18 three-point attempts.

2nd half

It only took the 76ers a few minutes to tie the game back up. Bamba flubbed an easy lob from Lowry and was unable to deter shots at the rim, allowing the Hornets to get back ahead. He was deep in his drop coverage, meaning he had to alter the shot to prevent a look or a second-chance opportunity on the board. It wasn’t entirely on him, though, as the Sixers' backline on defense continued to provide nothing.

Philly was able to drive and kick its way to shots on offense. Hield and Harris provided some crucial buckets and the Sixers passed their season average in team assists early in the third quarter. Had they not been in the midst of their worst defensive performance of the season, they could have run away with it. Maxey starting to heat up later in the third quarter still made it seem possible to go on a run that significantly turned the tides.

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That big run never came, as both offenses went cold in the minutes leading into the fourth quarter. Maxey still kept the Sixers ahead on the scoreboard, though not by much. They were nearly in lockstep with their respective G League clubs, who were tied at 84 after three quarters, but Philly led Charlotte 88-84.

The 76ers finally started looking like the better team to begin the final period, jumping out to a 7-2 run in the opening two minutes. Strengthened by some great minutes from Reed — who dominated the boards, scored in the paint and whacked a Cody Martin layup into the stands — Philly took its biggest lead of the game with nine. His name, you'll recall, is the sport that he plays.

Reed made great play after great play, including an incredible bounce pass to Maxey for a layup to beat the shot clock. Nurse had him close out the game with Batum, Lowry, Harris and Maxey. The Hornets went to a spaced-out lineup with Williams at the five. Maxey's downhill pressure became too much to contain for the Hornets but some shooting fouls under the basket from Lowry kept the game tight. He was whistled for an offensive foul when he was shooting a three but it was overturned on a challenge.

A triple from Williams made it a two-point game with two minutes left. Harris then drained a corner triple, rising right up after the catch and seeing the benefits of quick decision-making. After a Bridges layup, a chaotic possession ended with an offensive rebound from Hield and free throws for Lowry. He made both. Maxey blocked a Mann layup from behind to force Charlotte into a game of intentional fouling. He hit a pair of free throws to give the Sixers a seven-point lead with 23 seconds left, more than enough to hold on.

Random tidbits:

  • Nurse had some optimism regarding De'Anthony Melton's back injury, saying that he “had a good stretch of practices and felt fine and then didn't feel fine again coming out of Boston.” The team will have a better idea of his status by the start of next week, Nurse said, and his injury isn’t believed to be season-ending. 

The 76ers' next game comes on Sunday against the Dallas Mavericks at 1:00 PM EST.