The Philadelphia 76ers had all of the momentum in their Eastern Conference Semifinal series against the Miami Heat. After losing the first two games in Miami, the Sixers got All-Star center Joel Embiid back from injury. They then went on to win both games in Philadelphia. That left many wondering if his absence was the only reason the Sixers did not play better the first two games of the series.

Well, so much for that notion. In Game 5 Tuesday night, the Heat throttled the Sixers 120-85. The game was never close as Miami has pushed Philadelphia to the brink of elimination. During the game, Embiid struggled mightily to get anything going. He finished with 17 points on 7-for-12 shooting.

In the loss, the Sixers star posted a plus/minus of -29. That's the worst mark of his playoff career. But he was far from the only one. Sixers point guard James Harden also was a -29, and was only 5-for-13 from the floor Tuesday.

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Miami Heat star Caleb Martin next to Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum in front of the Kaseya Center.

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Stephen A. Smith in the middle, Knicks and 76ers logo on either side of him

Preston Byers ·

Philadelphia 76ers player Joel Embiid and former NBA player Charles Barkley

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All of the Philadelphia starters were pretty terrible in Game 5. Danny Green's -18 was the best among them. The Sixers only shot 36.5 percent from the field in the blowout loss. They were crushed on the glass, being out-rebounded 46-36. Philadelphia turned the ball over 15 times, leading to countless buckets for the Heat.

The Sixers were flat from the start, leaving TNT analyst Charles Barkley to put Embiid on blast. If Philadelphia has any thoughts of playing a Game 7 in Miami, they are going to have being a lot more energy and intensity back home in Game 6 Thursday.