The Philadelphia 76ers (23-14) faced the Indiana Pacers (21-18) seeking their third straight win with Joel Embiid sidelined. The Sixers snagged a 129-126 win in overtime despite numerous late-game blunders.

Let's break down the Sixers' win over the Pacers.

Sixers player notes:

James Harden: 26 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists, 8-20 FG shooting

Harden, as expected, led the offense with Embiid out due to foot soreness. Against a weak perimeter defense, he got into the paint often while dropping plenty of times along the way. He also made himself available as a spot-up shooter, which greatly helped the rest of the Sixers on offense.

In the fourth quarter, he got hunted on defense and committed some awful turnovers that gave Indiana life. He made up for it with a clutch steal on Haliburton that led to the game-tying layup. It was a very up-and-down game for The Beard but he ended up making enough big plays to get the win.

Tyrese Maxey: 17 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, 6-16 FG shooting

Maxey made his first start since getting injured. He continues to look more like his old self, showing off his blazing quickness and staying aggressive on offense. Contact on drives didn't faze him and he did a very good job spreading the ball around, including on a slick pocket pass that led right to a dunk from Matisse Thybulle.

Tobias Harris: 19 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 8-18 FG shooting

Harris made his first two shots of the night and stayed aggressive. He played the part of screener and made himself available as a cutter. Throw in some dunks that got the Wells Fargo Center crowd on its feet, the shot that got the game to overtime and two free-throws at the end of overtime and it was a very solid night for Harris (outside of his 1-5 shooting from beyond the arc).

Montrezl Harrell: 19 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 4 blocks, 8-9 FG shooting

His many struggles have been well-documented but this time, Harrell is getting some appreciation for a key performance off the bench. Not only did he show off some great defense with three blocks in the first half but also scored time after time. He wasn't just finishing with open lanes to the hoop after rolling on all his buckets, either. Although he also had five fouls, Harrell had a splendid game.

Pacers player notes:

Tyrese Haliburton: 16 points, 7 rebounds, 12 assists, 2 steals, 7-14 FG shooting

Haliburton orchestrated the Pacers offense with precision. He commanded the game very well with his passing, throwing perfectly accurate passes in a variety of ways, but also scored very efficiently. The way he changes pace and keeps the defense honest with the threat of a pass makes him difficult to stop, especially in the open floor.

Andrew Nembhard: 12 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 5-11 FG shooting

While Nembhard isn't the more well-known rookie wing on the Pacers — that would be Bennedict Mathurin, of course — he is still a very solid player. He looked plenty comfortable with the ball against the Sixers and was feisty on defense as he guarded Harden. Indiana might have found itself a very good two-way contributor for the future in the second round of last year's draft.

Buddy Hield: 24 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 9-22 FG shooting

Hield was a thorn in the Sixers side as someone they couldn't leave alone on the perimeter without worrying about allowing three points. With some key triples and an unusually high assist total, he was key for the Pacers. Defensively, though, he was someone the Sixers were able to target often.

Game notes:

1st half

  • The Sixers went with a three-guard, small-ball lineup with Embiid out. It made sense to do so against the Pacers, who start a typical center (Myles Turner) and a bunch of smaller wings around Haliburton.
  • P.J. Tucker injured his leg with 4:40 left in the first quarter. He looked to be in a great deal of pain, going down to the court before limping off to the locker room. He came back in the second quarter and opened up a triple for Melton on his first possession.
  • The Pacers lived up to their name and pushed the pace early on, resulting on several good looks from deep. The Sixers, though, got plenty of good shots at the rim, going 5-6 on such shots (9-17 from the paint overall) in the opening frame.
  • Montrezl Harrell had one of the best stints of his Sixers career, scoring eight points on four shots and blocking two shots within his first five minutes of action. He continued to power the Philly offense when Harden checked back in. Shake Milton also had some nice takes to the hoop in the second quarter.
  • The Sixers led at halftime 66-61, punctuating a solid first half with an emphatic Harris dunk in transition.

2nd half 

  • Maxey got to work with a pair of buckets and a dish to Harden on a triple to start the second half for the Sixers, who looked to push the pace. Haliburton didn't let them run away with it, though. His contributions included a steady, strong take right to the hoop against Melton in isolation.
  • Harden helped the Sixers extend their lead to double-digits with eight points in the first eight minutes of the third quarter. Buddy Hield kept it close for the Pacers with eight straight points (and an assist to Haliburton).
  • Maxey led a unit of bench guys in the fourth quarter and helped the Sixers maintain a lead. Milton played a key role alongside him. The Pacers, led by the interior scoring of Jalen Smith and some aggressive takes from Bennedict Mathurin that resulted in free-throw line trips, stayed with it and cut the deficit to four points with four minutes left. Mathurin scored 12 points in the fourth quarter.
  • The Pacers picked up the intensity and launched a press defense, forcing back-to-back turnovers and cutting the lead to one. They went up by four with under a minute left.
  • A steal-and-score from Maxey cut the lead to two. A steal from Harden and a putback layup from Harris tied the game. Hield missed a game-winning attempt on a runner. Onto overtime.

Overtime

  • Harrell saved Harden from getting cooked by Mathurin by taking a huge charge. He tried to take another but was called for his fifth foul as the rookie made both free throws.
  • Melton came through with a clutch rebound and triple (his fifth of the night) to get the lead back in Philly's favor. A dunk from Harrell off of an offensive board gave the Sixers a three-point cushion. He then protected it with a swat on a Mathurin drive.
  • Harden punctuated his wildly up-and-down performance with a missed pair of free throws…and then a block on Mathurin and a rebound. With two free throws, Harris put the finishing touches on the win, the 11th straight win at home for the Sixers.

Random thoughts:

  • Jalen Smith is quietly starting to build up a case of being a Sixers killer. After recording 17 points and 10 rebounds in the two teams' prior meeting, he had a team-high 11 points at halftime and had 17 again.
  • Of all the many things that Melton does well, it's his rebounding that really stands out to me. He fights on the glass and has a good sense of timing and the ability to bend around guys. Overall, he had a fantastic game.
  • Tucker ditched his undershirt in the second half. I can't say for sure if it was because he went 0-4 in the first half (he didn't take a shot in the second) but it was a starkly different look.

The Sixers will wrap up their brief homestand on Friday against the Chicago Bulls.