Best and worst of Sixers-Bulls: Furkan Korkmaz’s clutch three-pointers and Paul Reed’s D
As good as Joel Embiid was, the Sixers would not have won this game without Furkam Korkmaz. The forward made 7 of 9 three-pointers en route to scoring 25 points.
CHICAGO — Here is my look at some of the best and worst performances from the 76ers’ 114-105 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night at the United Center.
Best performance: Furkan Korkmaz gets this on a night when Joel Embiid finished with game highs of 30 points, 15 rebounds and two blocks. As good as Embiid was, the Sixers would not have won this game without Korkmaz. The forward finished with 25 points while making 7 of 9 three-pointers off the bench after missing Thursday’s win in Detroit with a right wrist injury. Korkmaz made his first four three-point attempts en route to scoring 14 first-half points. In the fourth quarter, he scored 11 points while making 4 of 6 shots, including going 3-for-4 on three-pointer.
Worst performance: Ayo Dosunmu missed four of his five shots en route to scoring two points off the bench for the Bulls. He also had four fouls and zero rebounds in 12 minutes, 40 seconds of action.
Best defensive performance: Sixers second-year forward Paul Reed, in his first career start, did a solid job defending DeMar DeRozan. Getting the start at power forward, Reed finished with one block and one steal while making DeRozan work hard for shots. The Bulls standout forward finished with 25 points on 7-of-15 shooting. However, he made only 2 of 7 shots in the first half.
Worst statistic: The Bulls were horrid from the three-point line. They made just 7 of 29 shots (24.1%).
Best statistic: The Sixers kept their three-point streak intact. They made 13 of 26 three-pointers (50%) to hit double-digit three-pointers in 10 straight games to begin the season. Before this year, the Sixers’ record was two straight games, which came at the start of the 2017-18 season.
Best reaction: Embiid buried a 26-foot, three-pointer to put the Sixers up eight points with 15.5 seconds left. While running back down the court, the center gave a naughty look and extended his arms before raising his left hand, as to wave goodbye and say good night to the sellout United Center crowd of 20,936. That drew some boos. But it was kind of a timely gesture, as the bucket clinched the win. .