76ers rally, hang on to beat Bucks

[January 26, 2017]  MILWAUKEE -- The Philadelphia 76ers keep finding ways to win.

After rallying from a 19-point deficit Tuesday against the Clippers, the 76ers found themselves with their backs against the wall again Wednesday night in Milwaukee, but four points in the final minute from Nerlens Noel -- including a mid-range jumper with 15 seconds to play -- paved the way for a 114-109 victory over the Bucks; Philadelphia's 10th in the last 12 games.

"Their perseverance and finding a way to win was outstanding," Philadelphia coach Brett Brown said. I give our guys credit; they made free throws, Nerlens made that open jump shot and we found a way to win on the road, back-to-back.

"That's a difficult thing at any level of a team's growth."

The Sixers were playing without big men Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor, both dealing with knee injuries, but were still able to generate plenty of offense thanks to Gerald Henderson and Dario Saric, who scored 20 and 17 points, respectively.

That duo anchored a bench unit that combined for 52 points while the Sixers got double-digit scoring from all of their starters except T.J. McConnell, who finished with seven points but dished out 13 assists.

He recorded 10 in the first half as the Sixers assisted on 25 of 28 baskets and shot 68 percent with nine 3-pointers to take a 72-58 lead into halftime.

The wheels started to fall off, though, in the third. Philadelphia scored just 16 points on 5-for-16 shooting and gave up nine points on seven turnovers while the Bucks, led by nine points from center Greg Monroe, started to close in.

Without Embiid or Okafor down low, the Sixers had difficulty controlling Monroe, who scored a game-high 28 points.

Monroe was especially tough in the second half, scoring 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting with five rebounds and two assists. He added eight more in the fourth quarter, and he put Milwaukee up three when he took a feed from Matthew Dellevadova for an easy layup with 1:15 left.

But after the Sixers went back in front, 110-109 on a pair of free throws by Noel, Monroe threw an in-bounds pass over the head of Antetokounmpo that sailed back out of bounds.

"I just need to make a better pass," Monroe said. "That's definitely a game we should have won. We may have had a different outcome if I make that pass."

After a Milwaukee timeout, Noel found himself wide open and knocked down a 12-footer to make it a three-point game.

76ers guard T.J. McConnell (1) drives for the basket between Milwaukee Bucks guard Tony Snell (21) and guard Matthew Dellavedova (8) during the first quarter at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

"It wasn't perfect coming down the stretch," Henderson said. "That just goes to show you that you have to keep playing. Nerlens hit two free throws and a jumper. We put ourselves in a position to make those plays. Nerlens isn't typically a jump shooter but he works on it and whoever passed it to him made the defense help and he made the shot. As long as you give yourself enough chances, you give yourself a chance to win."

Jabari Parker added 20 and Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 17 for Milwaukee, which shot 46.2 percent and went 7-for-28 from distance but gave up 33 points on 19 turnovers to fall for the sixth time in its last seven games.

"You got to play harder. In the Houston game, we played with a chip on our shoulders," Antetokounmpo said. "This game we didn't. We tried in the second half and we got the lead. But we can't just be the second half."

NOTES: The 76ers were without out Jamil Okafor and Joel Embiid. Embiid was not scheduled to join the team on the trip to Milwaukee as he's still not playing both ends of back-to-back sets but is also dealing with a left knee contusion. Okafor has knee soreness and is day to day. ... Bucks PG Malcolm Brogdon was selected to take part in the Rising Stars Challenge at the NBA All-Star Game next month in New Orleans. A second-round pick in last summer's draft, Brogdon is second among rookies at 9.2 points per game and leads that group with 4.1 assists. Along with Brogdon, Philadelphia's Embiid, Okafor and Dario Saric were also invited to participate in the event. ... C Miles Plumlee was in Milwaukee's starting lineup for a second consecutive game, leaving John Henson and Greg Monroe to come off the bench. ... The 76ers snapped a nine-game losing streak to the Bucks with a 113-104 victory last Monday in Milwaukee.

[© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.