While March Madness roared on in nearby Greensboro, the Philadelphia 76ers (47-22) and Charlotte Hornets (22-50) played each other for the final time this season. The Sixers took care of business and won their seventh straight game by a score of 121-82.

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

Sixers player notes:

Joel Embiid: 38 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 blocks, 16-21 FG shooting

Embiid dropped 53 points on the Hornets when the Sixers hosted them in Philadelphia. In this one, where he played just 29 minutes, he was similarly dominant as a scorer. It felt like he went to something new in his bag of tricks on almost every possession. Despite some more silly turnovers, it was yet another masterclass from the big man. It was his most efficient scoring game of the season with at least 20 shot attempts.

James Harden: 11 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists, 3 steals, 4-14 FG shooting

Harden was aggressive from the jump, scoring three times inside the restricted arc in the first quarter. He linked up with Embiid time after time as he entered the top 20 on the NBA's all-time assists leaderboard, passing Bob Cousy, and secured a triple-double, one shy of his 75th.

Tyrese Maxey: 13 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 4-10 FG shooting

Maxey took a back seat in this one but provided some nice shooting from beyond the arc, serving mostly as a floor spacer as Harden and Embiid picked apart the defense.

Tobias Harris: 18 points, 5 rebounds, 0 assists, 7-11 FG shooting

In what feels like a rarity over the previous weeks, Harris had himself a very good game. He shot the ball with confidence and filled in the gaps where the Sixers needed him to. Despite picking up a pair of early fouls, he surpassed his point total from his last six games by halftime. His second half wasn't very good but still, this was a very solid performance.

Hornets player notes:

Kai Jones: 10 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 5-8 FG shooting

Jones' springy hops, length and mobility made him the type of player that does well against the Sixers. He made his presence felt by contesting shots, securing rebounds and fueling the Charlotte offense with his activity.

Terry Rozier: 14 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, 6-18 FG shooting

Rozier had a decent outing with his shooting and defensive playmaking. No one on the Charlotte side played particularly well aside from Jones (in my opinion) but of the more notable shot creators they had available, Rozier looked the best.

Game recap:

1st half

To open the game, the Sixers had Maxey guard Rozier, Harden guard Kelly Oubre Jr. and Harris guard Gordon Hayward. The Hornets had Rozier guard Harden and Oubre guard Maxey. Charlotte looked to push the pace off of Philly turnovers and made the Sixers pay for their transgressions, taking an early lead. A pair of fouls from Harris led to Doc Rivers subbing Georges Niang in.

A few nifty, under-the-hoop finishes through fouls from Embiid, one of which he threw over his head and off the glass, fueled a 12-0 run that put the Sixers ahead. But just like Wednesday night against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Sixers were turnover-prone to start off. Two deep threes from Maxey, one of which was a half-court heave at the buzzer, narrowly kept them ahead at the end of the first quarter.

Jalen McDaniels did not play against his former team as he continues to nurse a hip injury, missing his second straight game. Rribers didn't replace his spot in the rotation and instead went with a Harden-and-bench group (later placing Harris back in for Niang) to start the second quarter. The Hornets' length and athleticism put them in positions to get fouls and offensive boards. Despite a solid bounce-back effort from Harris, Philly couldn't pull ahead.

Embiid, as he tends to do, changed the game when he came back in by overpowering the opposition on both ends of the floor. The Sixers found the space to get into fast breaks and took them while Embiid and Harden found a cohesive rhythm to go on a 13-4 run.

A mini scoring explosion from Embiid in the last few minutes of the second quarter gave Philly a 66-54 lead heading into halftime.

2nd half

Embiid began the second half with a short hook shot off of a Harden pass and a smooth jumper. Harris, certainly feeling himself after a strong first half, went for a dunk attempt over Nick Richards. He missed the dunk but earned a foul, cashing in only one freebie. P.J. Tucker found him in transition with a great bounce pass and he redeemed himself with a two-handed slam, forcing a Charlotte timeout after a 9-0 run to open the half.

As Embiid continued to cook and the Sixers' defense started forcing misses with its attentive rotations, they pulled away on the scoreboard. The Hornets had just four points in the first six minutes of the third quarter while the Sixers had 16. Embiid, who said he is looking to ramp up his defense as the playoff approach, stuffed a dunk attempt from Jones. The youngster responded but it did little to impact the game overall.

No game against these putrid Hornets will factor into an MVP case but Embiid did just about as much as he could have done. He was practically unstoppable on offense and immovable on defense. Some stars have a night here and there where it feels like they can do anything. For the Sixers center, it's been more like a stretch of games. He exited the game with a minute and change left in the third quarter after swatting a Rozier layup and was treated with applause from a crowd with a heavy contingent of Sixers fans.

Harden secured a triple-double as he and the bench boys started the fourth quarter. Danuel House Jr. subbed in for him after a few minutes as garbage time officially commenced. Paul  Reed had a few nice sequences as he fought for offensive boards. Charlotte native Jaden Springer got some minutes as Philly went up by as much as 38 points.

Random thoughts:

  • It seems like Hornets fans have by and large checked out of the season and I don't blame them one bit. I hope they turn it around and one of the main reasons why is Eric Collins, their outstanding play-by-play announcer who brings unmatched energy and hilarious sayings/exclamations. He deserves to call games for a good team. With Michael Jordan seemingly moving on from ownership of the franchise, the team could soon start heading in a positive direction.
  • Duke alumnus Alaa Abdelnaby's March Madness joke poking fun at North Carolina made me laugh. “You know the dress code for the [NCAA] tournament this year? No heels,” he said, getting a chuckle out of Kate Scott.

The Sixers' brief road trip ends tomorrow night as they take on the Indiana Pacers.